101 Reasons
by AllyLobster
Summary: 101 Reasons to ship Castle and Beckett. This is reposted, since it got taken down. There will be M rated stuff, but it won't be every chapter. Please read and review!
1. 1- Muse

**Sorry it took me so long to get this out. I was out of town for the weekend, and while I'd written another chapter for this, it didn't save and I lost it, and didn't have time to rewrite it before I left. So I'm going to start with this one.**

********Edit****** FF went and took this down because the first chapter was a list. So, whoever left me a review toward the beginning, you were right, and I probably should have listened. And, thanks, to whoever decided to report this story. Really, it means a lot to me. I'm just lucky that I wasn't far enough into this story to have deleted any chapters from the doc manager, so I was able to put it all in a word doc. **

**So here's where the begging starts. I was at 198 or 199 reviews when they took this story down. So for you wonderful people that reviewed, if it's not too much trouble, I'd appreciate it if you could leave a little message at the end of chapters you reviewed, just reminding me what you liked about each scene, because I'm kind of down, and I honestly considered not reposting this story. But ultimately, I decided that enough of you loved this story that I would continue it for you. So please, just leave a little message at the end of the chapters if you could, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks.**

**And thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday. It meant a lot.**

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**#1 Because she's his muse:**

Kate walked into the study from the living room and smiled as she watched Rick continue to write.

"You're still not done?" She asked.

Rick didn't look up at her, but he shook his head in reply, which Kate took as a win. With a sigh, she pushed off the door frame and entered the room. She wandered around for a bit while the clicking from Rick's computer drifted around them.

After a moment, Kate sighed and plopped onto the couch across from his desk. Normally she loved having days off; it was always nice to get a break from murders. But usually, Rick didn't spend the whole day writing. Usually, he didn't write at all on her days off.

So far, she'd finished one book and got halfway through another. She'd called the housekeeper with their new grocery list, and put the groceries away when they'd arrived. And Rick _still_ wasn't done.

After a moment, Kate heard a sigh, and then the clicking from the computer ended. She looked up to find Rick smiling at her with a look of satisfaction on his face.

"Now I'm done." He said as he stood up. "Want to take a look?"

Kate shrugged. Ever since they got together, she loved getting the chance to read his stories before the publishers, and she loved that he really listened to what she had to say about them. She raised her arms and made grabby hands until Rick walked over and pulled her to her feet, all while shaking his head playfully. Kate gave him a gentle lingering kiss before she stepped around him and settled into his desk chair.

Rick watched her for a moment before he turned and left the office in favor of finding some food in the kitchen.

Just when he was starting to wonder what she thought about the chapter, he heard a slightly stifled shriek, and a moment later, Kate was walking out of the office and heading straight toward him.

"Richard Castle!" She cried as she reached him. Before he knew what was happening, Kate was poking him harshly in the chest. "What the hell did you just have me read?"

"My next chapter?" He asked.

"How the hell did Nikki go from a crime scene to _that?_" Kate asked, her voice slightly higher than she would have liked.

"So you didn't like it?" Rick asked uncertainly. He'd been sure she would like it, or at least find it humorous.

"You know I liked it, Rick. I told you how much I liked it when it was the two of us. Two days ago."

Rick looked her over for a moment before he replied. "I'm not seeing a problem. I didn't know where the crime scene was going, so I-"

"You what?" Kate interrupted. "You thought you'd practice writing freaking _porn_?" She hissed the last word.

"Well, when you say it like that..." Rick said.

"What else would you call it?" Kate asked, doing her best to still should annoyed when all she really wanted to do was throw him down on the floor and ride him hard.

"Artistic integrity?" Rick tried while flinching slightly at what he thought her next move might be.

"Artistic integrity?" Kate asked. "Seriously? Rick, you can't claim that if what you wrote was exactly what we did two nights ago. You even slipped up and stuck our names in there."

"So it's not any good?"

Kate sighed and stepped closer. As she looked into Rick's eyes, she could tell that he was exhausted, and she realized that he'd been struggling to get anything good on paper.

"It's good, Rick. You're very good at writing like that. And you're even better at actually doing it. But I'm not comfortable with your fans, or your publishers, reading about our sex life, ok?"

Rick nodded. "I know. I just couldn't think of anything else to write. I was staring at a blank screen all day."

Kate smiled and kissed him softly. "It's ok. I'm perfectly happy to be your muse in bed, so long as our activities don't get shared with other people."

Rick smiled and kissed her back. "Wanna go try some new activities?"

Kate laughed and followed him when he tugged her behind him toward the bedroom.

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**Bam, there you go. Hope you all liked this.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	2. 26- Ice Cubes

**#26 Because she does this one thing... with ice cubes**.

"Castle, the ice is melting." Kate called from the bedroom.

Rick was torn. He really wanted to learn about her trick with ice cubes, but it wasn't midnight yet, which meant he could still die. He quickly glanced down at his watch and smiled when he saw that it was nearly midnight. When the second hand hit the 12, Rick jumped a little with relief before he hurried into the bedroom.

Kate was already laying on the bed in nothing more than her bra and panties, and Rick felt his pants get instantly tighter. Kate smiled coyly at him when he stepped toward the bed.

"Care to join me?" She asked, and the huskiness in her voice was almost enough to make him come then.

Rick smiled as he slowly unbuttoned his shirt and let it fall to the floor before he lowered his hand and swiftly undid the button and zipper on his jeans. Kate shifted from her reclined position on the bed and kneeled in front of him. She was still on the bed, so Rick took a step toward her, and kissed her softly while Kate ran her hands over his body. When her hands reached the waistband of his pants, Kate slid her fingers under and pulled his pants and boxers down in one go.

Rick stepped out of them and nudged Kate slightly until she scooted back enough for him to join her on the bed. As they continued kissing, Kate managed to get Rick where she wanted him, so that he was leaning with his back against the headboard and his legs out in front of him.

Kate gave him a smile before she reached over and grabbed the glass sitting on the nightstand. She took a quick drink, and Rick didn't miss the fact that an ice cube made its way into her mouth. Kate set the glass back down and moved so that she was settled between his legs. She locked eyes with Rick as she lowered her mouth and licked a stripe up his cock.

Rick hissed at the sensation, and Kate smirked before she took him into her mouth. She'd managed to make a cradle with her tongue for the ice cube to rest in, and as she worked him with her tongue, the ice traveled over his erection.

"Fuck, Kate." Rick said as he gently laced the fingers of one hand into her hair. "You're really good at that."

Kate chuckled around him, and Rick was pushed even closer to the edge. When Kate pulled away a moment later, Rick let out a sound of disappointment, until he saw Kate reach over and take another drink, making sure to get another ice cube in her mouth. She returned her mouth to Rick's cock, and picked up where she'd left off.

It didn't take Rick long to get to the edge, and suddenly, he didn't want to come in her mouth. He tugged on her hair, but it only made Kate suck harder.

"Kate, please." Rick said.

Kate pulled off with an obscene sound and looked at him, one eyebrow raised in her typical fashion. "Rick, come on. The whole point of this if for you to come in my mouth."

Rick looked at her for a moment, and Kate realized he wasn't sure she was serious. "Rick, I mean it. I wouldn't do this if I didn't want you to." She said softly as she leaned up and kissed him gently.

When he tasted himself slightly on her tongue, Rick cracked. When Kate pulled away, she looked up at him, and smiled reassuringly when he nodded slightly.

She took another drink and lowered herself back to where she'd been. Their conversation had drawn Rick back from the precipice, but he was quickly propelled forward again when Kate doubled her efforts. Rick had another moment of hesitation, but a particularly harsh suck from Kate followed by her dragging the ice over the tip of his cock made him forget his worries, and a moment later, he spilled into her mouth with a shout as his nails dragged over her scalp.

Kate swallowed everything, and she licked him clean. When she was done, she pulled away and pressed a gentle kiss to the tip of his cock. She crawled up his body and kissed him softly.

"I told you I had a trick." She murmured, and Rick huffed out a laugh.

"You certainly did. That was..." He trailed off, lost for words.

"Yeah." Kate said.

"Give me a moment, and I'll repay the favor." Rick said as he tucked her hair behind her ear.

Kate shook her head. "Don't worry about it." She said with a soft smile.

Rick looked at her in confusion for a moment before realization dawned on him. "Did you really?" He asked as surprise colored his tone.

Kate nodded. "I _really_ like my little trick." She said as she kissed his cheek.

"Is that the only thing you like?" Rick asked with a sly grin, his brain finally functioning again.

"No. I also really like having you in my mouth." Kate admitted as she kissed him softly.

Rick nodded and wrapped his arms around her to pull her into his side.

"Still." He said after a moment. "As soon as Rick Jr. is ready, we'll continue this."

Kate chuckled. "I don't really think he's junior." She said as she trailed her fingers over his cock lightly. Instantly, Rick felt himself twitch and he hissed.

"You're going to kill me." He said as he rolled Kate onto her back and kissed her.

Kate laughed and threaded her fingers in his hair. "Then I guess we better get to work. Never know which time will be our last."

Rick growled as he lowered his head and kissed her roughly, causing Kate to arch her back and push her hips into his.

She really would kill him one of these days.

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**There you go. Just so you know, these aren't all going to be ridiculously smutty, but I've wanted to write this one forever, so I did.**

**If you have any ideas, whether for this story or another, please let me know. I have quite a few of these planned, but there are some I'm not sure how to write. So if you have a suggestion, let me know, and I'll let you know if I've got a plan for that number or not. And if I don't, I'll do my best to write what you give me.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	3. 27- Lost

**#27 Because she thought she lost him**

Kate was sitting at her desk working on paperwork when her phone started ringing. She reached out and grabbed it, and answered without looking at the display, assuming it was Rick calling to let her know he was done at Black Pawn.

"Are you on your way?" She asked by way of greeting.

"Kate?" Alexis' voice asked.

"Alexis?" Kate asked, her attention completely on the girl on the other end. "What's up?"

"You need to come right now." Alexis said, panic overriding anything else in her voice.

Kate stood up and grabbed her jacket. "Where am I going?" She asked.

"Lennox Hill." Alexis answered.

Kate froze midstep to the elevator. "Why am I going to a hospital?" She asked, even though she was positive she knew the answer.

"Dad was in a car accident." Alexis said. "It's bad, Kate." She said, her voice breaking on the last word.

"Shit." Kate hissed. "I'll be there as soon as I can, Alexis." She said before she hung up and continued on her way.

"Detective!" Gates called from her office.

"Sir?" Kate asked, not entirely in the mood to deal with her captain.

"Where are you going? Did a lead come through?"

"No, Sir."

"Then why are you leaving?"

Kate sighed. "I'm going to Lennox Hill."

Gates looked at her for a moment. "Why?"

"Castle was in a car accident, and his daughter just called me."

Gates paused for a second before she nodded, and as soon as Kate had permission, she turned and fairly sprinted from the precinct.

As soon as she got into her car, Kate flicked on the lights and sirens, even though she was usually against such an action. But when cars started parting for her, Kate was grateful that she was able to use them. The drive didn't take long, and Kate managed to find a spot close to the emergency room. She hurried to lock her car while she started running toward the building.

When she entered the emergency room, a nurse approached her and started saying something about going to admissions if she was looking for someone. Kate wasn't paying attention though, and was instead scanning the crowd. When she caught sight of a flash of red hair, she sighed in relief.

"Alexis!" She called before she turned away from the nurse, not caring if it was rude.

Alexis turned at the sound of her name, and a second later, she was running at Kate. Kate had just enough time to process what was about to happen and ensure that no one went toppling to the floor before Alexis was hitting her full force while her arms wrapped around Kate's waist.

"Kate." Alexis breathed as she hugged her tightly.

"Shh." Kate whispered as she hugged Alexis back and smoothed her hair.

After a moment, Alexis pulled away and wiped her eyes. "Thank you for coming." Alexis murmured.

"Of course." Kate said. "How bad is it?"

Alexis shook her head. "I have no idea. But one of the doctors came out to let us know he was going to surgery, and he was covered in blood."

Kate nodded and wrapped her arms around Alexis' shoulders and led her to a seating area. "Where's Martha?"

Alexis took a deep breath. "She was in the Hamptons. She should be back by tonight."

Kate nodded and reclined into the sofa, pulling Alexis with her. Together, they waited for what seemed like ages until the doors opened again, and Kevin, Javier, and Martha walked in. When they saw Alexis and Kate, they hurried over, and the two women stood up to give and receive hugs.

"We would have come sooner, chica. But Gates wanted us to track down a lead." Javier said when they'd finished hugging.

Kate nodded. "I know. He's still in surgery." She added, mainly for Martha's benefit.

"What happened?" Kevin asked once they'd all claimed a seat.

Alexis sighed from her position beside Kate. "He called me to say he was done at Black Pawn and was heading to the precinct, and he wanted to know if I'd be home later, or if it would just be him and Kate. He was about to say something else, when I heard a screech, and a loud crash. After that, I couldn't get him to say anything else. But I could still hear noises coming over the phone."

"He was talking on the phone and driving?" Kevin asked.

Alexis shook her head. "No. He had a car pick him up from Black Pawn. He always did. Said they fried his brain so much there that he couldn't focus on operating a car."

Everyone nodded, and when the questions had ended, they fell into silence again. Kate wrapped her arms around Alexis again, and smiled when she felt Alexis relax against her.

An hour later, a doctor came out of the operating wing, and asked for the family of Richard Castle. Immediately, Alexis, Martha, and Kate stood up and went to talk with him.

"It was touch and go for a while. He lost a lot of blood, and honestly he almost didn't make it to surgery."

Alexis had started crying, and she turned to press her face into Kate's shoulder and Kate tried to calm the shaking girl.

"We were able to stabilize him, however." The doctor added with a small smile. "He had a punctured lung which we were able to fix, along with cracked ribs and massive internal bleeding. We were able to fix the internal bleeding, but his ribs will take time to fully heal."

"Can we see him?" Martha asked.

"Yes, but only two people at a time." The doctor said. "Just give us a little time to get him into a room, and we'll have a nurse come get you."

When they nodded, the doctor gave them another small smile before he turned and walked away. When they got back to their friends and shared the news, the boys decided to head home for the night.

"We just needed to know he was gonna make it." Kevin said when Kate protested.

"And since you're not working the rest of this case with us, we'll need to pull overtime. Which means early mornings for a while." Javier added.

Kate was about to apologize, when they both gave her matching glares that told her not to even think about being sorry.

When the boys had left, the three women were taken to Rick's room, where it was decided that Martha and Alexis would visit first before heading home, and Kate would stay with him for the night. When Martha and Alexis appeared a few minutes later, they hugged Kate tightly, and after she promised to call them with any developments, they left.

Kate took a deep breath before she pushed open the door to Rick's room and stepped inside. He looked fragile in his bed, with various tubes and cords connecting him to a heart monitor and and IV. Kate was relieved to see that rather than having to use a respirator, Rick was breathing on his own, which she took as a good sign.

She made her way carefully to the chair by the bed and lowered herself into it. She reached out and took his left hand in hers, since his right had the IV. Kate carefully brought his hands up to her lips and pressed a soft kiss to his palm. As she was lowering his hand back to the bed, the dam broke, and tears began to flow freely from her eyes. She leaned forward and rested her forehead on his stomach, still managing to be careful of his ribs. As the tears continued to flow, Kate's body began shaking with the force of her sobs. When she'd finally cried all that she could, Kate wiped her eyes, but left her head where it rested.

She must have fallen asleep, because she woke up when she felt something combing through her hair. She sat up suddenly and watched as Rick's hand fell from her head back to the bed. When she raised her eyes, she found his locked on her face.

Instantly, she began crying again. Rick shifted over the best he could and tugged at Kate until she lowered herself to the bed beside him. When she finally managed to calm down, she noticed that some of the tubes were gone.

"How long have you been awake?" She asked.

"A couple hours. But I didn't want to wake you." He answered, and his voice was still slightly rough from disuse. "One of the nurses came in and saw me awake, so she got me some water and got rid of some tubes."

Kate nodded and curled into his side as a yawn overtook her. "Sleep, Kate." Rick said as he kissed her head.

"How are you still taking care of me when you're the one in the hospital?" She asked.

Rick smiled. "Don't make me laugh. It hurts."

Kate started to shift away from him, but Rick made it clear he didn't want her going anywhere. "But your ribs..."

"Can handle you needing a hug." Rick said as he kissed her head again.

Kate nodded and resumed her previous position. "Oh, I need to call Martha and Alexis." She said as she tried to get away to get her phone.

"Later." Rick said. "I just need this right now. Call them later."

Kate looked at him for a moment before she suddenly threw her arms around him, still mindful of stitches and broken ribs. "I thought I lost you." She whispered as she hugged him as tightly as was safe.

Rick managed to wrap his arms around her in return. "I'm not that easy to get rid of." He said with a smile.

They hugged for a moment longer before Kate curled into him again and shut her eyes, and moments later, they were both asleep.

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**There you go! Hope you guys liked this.**

**If you have any ideas for this story, please let me know. I already have a few planned out, but there are some I'm not sure how to write. So let me know your ideas, and I'll let you know if I've already got something planned for that number or not. And if I don't, I'll do my best to do your idea justice.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	4. 79- Jealous Kate

**#79 Because they are jealous.**

The launch party for the newest Nikki Heat was more insane than either of them could imagine. There was press everywhere, and as Kate walked into the room, she had to blink rapidly to regain her vision.

"Sorry about that." Rick murmured.

Kate squeezed his arm and smiled. "It's part if this. I get it." Kate replied.

Rick smiled at her and led her further into the room, and Kate took in the lavish setting. She caught a glimpse of Lanie, Kevin, Javier, and Jenny in a corner by the bar and sighed. Rick heard her sigh and when he followed her sightline, he smiled.

"Why don't you go say hi?" He murmured into her ear.

Kate smiled at him and softly kissed his cheek before she turned and went to greet their friends.

"There she is!" Lanie exclaimed when Kate got to the bar. "Someone's looking nice."

Kate blushed and hugged her friend. "Hi, Lanie."

"Where's our boy?" Javier asked.

"He's uh-" Kate said as she looked around. She stopped suddenly when the man she was looking for caught her attention.

Or, rather, the girl hanging off of him did.

"Is that?" Lanie asked as she saw what Kate had seen.

"That's a little gross." Javier said as he too saw what was happening.

"You can tell he's uncomfortable." Kevin said.

It was true. Rick's posture was stiffer than Kate had ever seen it, and that gave her a great deal of comfort.

Kate sighed. "I'll be back. Or not."

Her friends laughed softly as Kate slid off the stool she'd been seated on and made her way across the room. As she got closer, she realized that the woman hanging off her boyfriend's arm was none other than Nathalie Rhodes.

"Hi, Nathalie." Kate said as she reached them. As soon as she arrived, the mayor and his wife bid farewell and left to mingle with the other guests.

"Kate." Nathalie said with a nod, and Kate bristled when she didn't show any signs of backing off. It was no longer a secret that Kate and Rick were together, although, Nathalie had been in rehab...

Kate sighed quietly and turned to Rick. She reached out and firmly grabbed the lapels of his jacket. She smirked when Nathalie loosened her grip, and a moment later, Kate was crushing her lips into Rick's.

Rick was stunned at first, but after a second, he extracted his arm from Nathalie's grip and wrapped it around Kate's waist. His other hand came to rest on the back of Kate's neck, and he tugged her closer to him. When they came up for air, Rick smirked and kissed the tip of Kate's nose.

"She left." Rick murmured.

"I know. But I don't want to stop kissing you." Kate whispered back.

Rick laughed. "Later. But, stay with me the rest of the night. I don't want to deal with another girl hanging off me, unless it's you."

"I don't want to deal with it either." Kate said.

They shared one last chaste kiss before Rick steered them toward another group of people. "By the way," he murmured. "You're cute when you're jealous."

Kate laughed, and didn't even try to deny that she'd been jealous.

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**There will likely be a part two to this, just because Rick hasn't had the chance to be jealous yet. It might be the next chapter, or the next chapter might be something else. **

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers on the list, please let me know, and I'll let you know if I've already got an idea. If I don't, I'll do my best to write whatever prompt you give me.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	5. 79- Jealous Rick

**So here's the second part to the jealousy bit. Sorry it took so long.**

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**#79 Because they're jealous.**

As Rick sat beside Kate in the interrogation room, he was getting steadily angrier. It wasn't anything to do with Kate- except that everything in his world was to do with her- or at least, not what she was doing.

It was the scum across the table from them. He was some druggie who'd been caught buying from their prime suspect's brother. So really, they didn't even need to be talking to him, but their suspect was missing, and this was their best shot to find the brother and, hopefully, the killer.

But that didn't mean the druggie was staying on topic.

"I'm just sayin, sweetheart." He said as he leaned closer to Kate. "You can ditch your little friends here and come away with me. I'll show you where to find the good stuff, and we can go off together."

Rick tensed at the new tactic, and he was seconds away from punching the guy in the face when he felt a weight come to rest on his thigh. When he spared a quick look down, he realized that Kate was resting her and on his leg, and a quick glance over to her showed that she was just uncomfortable with this guy's attention as he was. Rick took a deep breath and tried to focus on the big picture, while trying not to give in to the temptation to throw Kate down on the table right then and show the scumbag who she belonged to. And then Rick cringed internally at the thought of what Kate would do to him if she ever found out that he thought- even for just a moment- that she belonged to him.

They wrapped up the interrogation shortly thereafter, and Rick was slightly surprised to find that Kate had managed to get the brother's location out of the druggie after all. After uniforms had come to take him away, Rick was moving to stand up when Kate's hand on his leg tightened, keeping him in his seat. Rick watched as she pressed a button that stopped the recording in the room.

"Kate?" He asked, unsure as to what she was doing. They had a possible location for their suspect, it wasn't like her to let something like that sit.

"Talk to me Rick." She murmured as she reached out and took his hand in her own. "What was going on in your head during that?"

Rick looked at her for a moment. "Shouldn't we-" He started, but Kate interrupted with a shake of her head.

"I had the uniforms tell Ryan and Esposito. They'll take care of it. I want to take care of you. So, what's going on?"

"Seriously? Did you not hear what that guy was saying?" Rick asked.

"Of course I did." Kate said with a shrug. "People say that kind of thing if they think it'll help them. You didn't think I was actually going to listen to him and go with him, did you?"

Rick sighed and squeezed Kate's hand. "Not with him, no." He finally said.

"But with someone else?" Kate guessed.

Rick sighed again and nodded. "I guess I'm just waiting for you to find someone else, someone who doesn't drive you crazy."

Kate smiled. "But then my life wouldn't be fun." She teased. "Relax, Rick. I'm not going anywhere. With anyone who isn't you."

Rick nodded. "I know that, I really do."

Kate smiled as she stood up. She leaned in and pressed a kiss to Rick's temple as she made her way to the door. "You're cute when you're jealous." She murmured.

"I wasn't jealous!" Rick cried as he shot out of his chair and followed her back into the bullpen. "I had no reason to be jealous!"

"You didn't seem to realize that until I told you." Kate said with a smile. "It's ok, Rick. I like that you get jealous. It means you don't want to lose me."

"Of course I don't, but that doesn't mean I was jealous!"

Kate laughed and shook her head. "Whatever you say, Writer Boy. But we both know I'm right."

Rick was prevented from commenting again when Gates stuck her head out of her office to demand an update. When Kate was done, the time for jokes had passed. But that didn't mean Rick was going to let it go. He just had to wait.

* * *

**So this was kind of a different spin on jealousy. It started out with it, then Rick wanted to be insecure, and I'm not going to tell him not to feel what he's feeling. **

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I already have some planned out, but there are a few I could use some help with. So let me know if you have any ideas, and if I don't have something planned, I'll write yours to the best of my ability.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	6. 62- Excuses- Rick

**#62 Because he doesn't need to make up excuses to have her come back to him.**

Rick was pacing in his study, trying to decide if it was worth it to call or not. He'd picked up his phone several times, but each time he put it down before dialing. Finally, he grabbed his phone with a sigh and dialed before he could convince himself not to. Again.

"Hello?"

"Kate?" Rick asked.

"Are you ok?"

"Um, yeah. Look, I'll just call you in the morning or something. You were probably asleep."

"Rick." Kate said as he was pulling the phone away from his ear. "What's going on. And no, I wasn't sleeping."

Rick sighed. "There's a weird noise coming from the kitchen. And the only gun I have is a laser tag gun."

Kate laughed softly. "I'll be there in a few minutes."

Rick spent those few minutes trying to figure out if he should do something in the kitchen to make the weird sound or not. Just as he was about to put an elaborate plan into action, there was a knock on his door. When he opened it, Kate was standing there smiling at him with a bag hanging off her shoulder.

"Hi." He murmured as he motioned for her to come in.

"Hi." She replied as she kissed his cheek. She made her way through the loft and into his bedroom where she set her stuff down and stripped out of her work clothes and into her pajamas.

"Come on, Castle." She said when she was done in the bathroom and found him staring at her from the doorway to his bedroom. It's bedtime."

"But the noise..." Rick trailed off as he tried to keep up with his charade.

Kate smiled as she walked over to him. "Was fake. It's ok, Castle."

Rick looked at her skeptically. "What's ok?"

Kate laughed again as she tugged him into bed. When he complied and got himself comfortable, Kate curled into his body with her head resting on his chest. "It's ok that you didn't want to be alone tonight. Alexis moved out, and you need someone here with you. It's ok. You didn't have to make up an excuse to have me come stay with you."

"You knew?" He asked.

Kate looked up at him and nodded. "I know _you_." She said.

Rick nodded and kissed her head. They settled into the bed, and Kate was on the brink of sleep when she spoke again.

"For future reference, you can just tell me you want me to spend the night. You don't have to make a story up."

"Duly noted." Rick said as he kissed her once more before they fell asleep. And for the first time since he'd arrived home, the silence didn't bother him.

* * *

**Hope you guys liked the sweet stuff. **

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours. **

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	7. 72- Touch

**#72 Because he touches things.**

"Rick, can you help me?" Kate calls from the bedroom.

A few seconds later, Rick walked in and smiled. "What do you need, Kate?"

"My shoulder not to be dislocated?" She asked. "But really, I need you to help me get dressed."

Rick's eyes lit up, and Kate sighed. "I would be happy to help." Rick said.

Kate rolled her eyes. "I bet you would." She muttered. "I've already picked out my clothes, I just need help putting them on."

Rick nodded and stepped closer. "Are you sure you should be going to work today?"

Kate smiled. "I'm just going to be sitting at my desk, Rick. I'm not going to be running around tackling suspects. Besides, I don't need my left arm to write."

Rick nodded and carefully pulled off the sling Kate had to wear to stabilize her shoulder while it settled back in properly. Then he carefully unbuttoned and removed the shirt she'd stolen from him last night, followed by the yoga pants she usually wore.

When she was sitting in front of him in nothing more than her panties, Rick couldn't help himself and he reached out to cup her breasts. Kate let out a hiss of pleasure before she could stop it. When she realized what had happened, she glared at Rick until he removed his hands and took the bra she held out to him. He managed to get it on without too much difficulty, and without jostling Kate's arm.

"It's much more fun to take your bra off." Rick murmured as he kissed her jaw gently.

"Mmm." Kate agreed as he trailed his lips down her neck, and before she knew what was happening, Rick gently pulled her to her feet while he bent his head to lick at the skin where her bra rested.

"Rick." Kate said breathily.

"Mmm." Rick said, and Kate would have laughed if she could think clearly.

"I need to go to work. And I'm not supposed to have sex until my shoulder is better."

"Doctor didn't say that. He said 'no strenuous activity.'" Rick said.

"Sex is always strenuous with us." Kate murmured as she brought her good arm up to tug his head away. "Seriously, though. I need to get dressed."

Rick pouted, but after Kate leaned in for another kiss, he pulled away and grabbed her shirt. He slid it up her left arm and had her reach behind her slightly to get her right arm in, making sure not to move her bad arm in the process. When the fabric was resting on her shoulders, Rick began buttoning it, while at the same time kissing up her stomach.

When the shirt had been buttoned, Rick grabbed the pants Kate had set aside, and helped her into them as he peppered her legs with kisses. When Rick had buttoned her pants, he helped Kate back into the sling before he had her sit back down so he could help her with her shoes. When she was finally dressed, Rick grabbed her brush and began running it through Kate's hair. When he was done, he moved the hair off the back of her neck and pressed a heated kiss to her neck.

"Rick." Kate gasped, but there was just enough warning in her voice to prevent him from going any further. He pulled away and helped Kate stand up, and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"You love me." He murmured.

Kate laughed. "You, yes. Your inability to do anything without touching what you're not supposed to be touching, not so much."

Rick did his best to look hurt, but the laughter in his eyes prevented it from being effective.

"Be careful today." He murmured when they'd reached the front door. "And please, call me if you need me to bring you home early."

"I will." Kate said with a smile.

"Are you sure you don't want me to drive you there?"

"Rick, I told you. We caught a murder, So Javi and Kevin are waiting downstairs for me."

Rick nodded. "Right. Then I'll see you later."

"Yes, you will." Kate said as she leaned in and kissed him softly. "I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

**This is one time where the next chapter will be a continuation of sorts for this. Just so you know.**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have quite a few planned out, but there are some that I'll need help with. So if you've got any ideas, please let me know. If I don't have something planned out already, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	8. 11- Brains

**So this is a continuation of #72, since they couldn't really do anything. Or so Kate said.**

* * *

**#11 Because she wants to fuck his brains out.**

"Mmff."

Kate heard the noise, but she was too focused on kissing Rick to pay any attention to it. At least, she was kissing him until he pulled his mouth away from hers.

"Kate, hold on." Rick said as he tried to catch his breath.

"Richard Castle, if you value your life at all, do not tell me to slow down." Kate warned.

"Kate-" Rick tried again.

"Because I've been doing nothing but slow since I got that horrendous thing put on my arm. But it's gone now, Rick. Which means I can go as fast as I'd like."

Rick looked Kate up and down, and while it was true that the sling was gone, she still looked a little hesitant to use her arm. He opened his mouth to say as much, but Kate used her hand to cover his mouth.

"No." She practically hissed. "Stop thinking, Rick."

Rick looked at her again. "I just don't want to hurt you, Kate." He murmured.

"I appreciate that. I really do. But if you want to take things slow tonight, then we're not doing anything. Because that's not what I need right now. I've been unable to do anything other than paperwork and generally sitting around on my ass for way too long. So what I need now, is a good, old-fashioned fucking. But if you're not on board, then I'll figure out a way to take care of it myself."

As soon as she suggested that, Rick's head snapped up to meet her eyes, and he saw that she was completely serious. Rick sighed and shook his head. "I'm not sure, Kate. I want to, of course I do. I want nothing more than to pound you into the mattress, but I'm not sure it's wise just yet."

"Rick, please." Kate said, and the desperation was clear in her voice. "If you're worried about pounding me into the mattress, then let me do it to you. Just let me fuck your brains out. Please."

Rick sighed, but he nodded anyway. "Just promise that you'll say something if your shoulder starts to hurt."

Kate nodded once before she dove back in and kissed him passionately. Rick wrapped one arm around her waist to pull her body into his while his other hand traveled up and down her back. Kate shivered when she felt his hand ghost over her ass, and she groaned when she felt him squeeze. A second later, Kate let out a shriek of surprise when Rick lifted her from the ground, and it was pure instinct that had Kate wrapping her legs around his waist as Rick began walking toward the bedroom.

When they arrived, Rick set Kate on her feet and gently tugged her shirt off while she worked to unbutton his. When they were both shirtless, Rick bent his head to lick and kiss along Kate's breasts where the top of her bra rested. Kate groaned and threaded her fingers into Rick's hair as her hips bucked up, desperate for some kind of friction.

Rick pulled away long enough to rid Kate of her bra and she used the opportunity to get rid of the rest of their clothes, which went flying to all corners of the bedroom. When they were naked, Kate nudged Rick until he was sitting on the bed with his back against the headboard. Kate moved to the end of the bed and began to crawl her way up to Rick, and she stopped when she was settled on her knees between his legs. She leaned down and licked his cock once from base to tip. She was about to bend down to take him into her mouth when Rick slid his fingers into her hair and tugged her away.

"Rick, I said-"

"I know what you said." Rick answered before he kissed her lightly. "But I've waited just as long as you have for us to be able to do this again, and if you do that, I'm not going to make it to the main event."

Kate watched him for a moment before she sighed and kissed him again. As they kissed, she felt Rick's hands leave her hair. One hand rested on her hip, and the other wedged between their bodies as Rick began rubbing circles on her clit. Kate began rocking against his hand, and it didn't take long for her to reach her climax. Rick worked her down, and when Kate reopened her eyes, she had a feral sort of determination in them.

She grabbed the hand that had been between her legs and pulled it up to her mouth, where she sucked at his fingers. Rick kept eye contact with her until he couldn't anymore, and he slammed his eyes shut. Kate kept up her antics with his fingers for another few moments before she let his fingers fall from her mouth. She leaned in and kissed him gently once before her weight suddenly disappeared from Rick's lap.

Rick's eyes flew open just in time to see Kate grab his cock and slide down onto it with her back to him. Almost instantly, Kate began moving her hips, and each small movement drove Rick closer to the edge. Rick wrapped his arms around Kate as she continued moving atop him, and he palmed her breasts as she worked him. After a short while, Rick planted his feet on the bed and began meeting her thrusts, which earned him some very inventive curses from Kate.

Kate set her knees on the bed and began using them for leverage while her hands covered Rick's on her breasts and she used her hands to make him squeeze her breasts harder. Rick complied, which resulted in more curses spilling from Kate's mouth.

When Rick could tell that Kate was close, he dropped one hand down to rub at her clit again, while his other hand continued to massage her breast, and he occasionally tweaked her nipple to bring her even closer to her climax.

When it hit her, Kate froze for a second before she screamed his name. Rick felt her walls flutter around his cock, and after one more thrust, he spilled himself into Kate.

When they were done, Kate rolled off Rick's cock and collapsed onto the bed beside him.

"Wow." She gasped.

Rick chuckled. "Yeah."

They were silent for a while longer, until Kate was able to find enough energy and oxygen for more words. "How are your brains?"

Rick laughed again and pulled Kate into his side. "Sufficiently fucked." He replied as he kissed he head.

Kate nodded. "Mine too."

They fell into another silence, and they both began drifting off to sleep.

"I'm not done with you yet." Kate mumbled eventually.

"I know, Kate." Rick mumbled back, his voice showing that he was already half asleep.

* * *

**There you have it. I hope you guys liked it. **

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I already have some planned out, but there are a few I could use some help with. So let me know if you have any ideas, and if I don't have something planned, I'll write yours to the best of my ability.**

** Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	9. 91- Cuddle

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story. And super special thanks- and cookies!- to those of you who continue to review every chapter. Reviews have been declining, but you guys make me feel so loved!**

**Sorry for reposting this. I was having some issues with FF, so I decided to take this chapter down and repost it. So feel free to re-read this, or to just skip it. I hope to have a new chapter for tomorrow though.**

* * *

**#91 Because they could always just cuddle.**

When Kate stepped through the doorway and into the loft, she let Rick take her coat off before she turned and deposited her gun in the lockbox. When she was done, she turned toward the kitchen, but she was stopped by Rick's hand on her arm.

Rick turned her to face him, and he used his hand to lift her face up so he could see her eyes. "What's up, Kate?" He whispered.

Kate shrugged. "I don't know. Just tired, I guess."

Rick nodded and tugged her closer to his body so he could wrap his arms around her securely. Kate relaxed into his body as she brought her arms up to circle his waist, and she sighed softly. Rick pressed a kiss her her head and stroked his hands up and down her spine.

"Rick?" Kate finally asked.

"Mm?"

"Would you be mad if I said I didn't feel like having sex tonight?"

Rick pulled away and Kate could clearly see hurt in his eyes. "Of course I wouldn't be mad, Kate. Why would you even ask-" Rick paused and looked at her intently for a moment. "Kate-"

Kate shook her head to cut him off. "I've never had a boyfriend be mad about not having sex. I just wanted to make sure."

Rick nodded and pulled her back into his body. "What do you want to do instead?"

Kate sighed. "Can we just watch a movie?"

"Yeah." Rick said. "Why don't you go ahead and get into your pajamas, and I'll order Chinese?"

Kate shook her head. "I'm not really hungry." She said softly.

Rick looked at her skeptically. "Are you sure you're feeling ok?" He asked.

Kate nodded. "Yeah. I'm just not hungry is all."

Rick sighed, but he nodded. "Ok. But I get to make you a big breakfast tomorrow."

Kate smiled. "Deal."

With a soft kiss, Kate stepped out of the circle of his arms and made her way to the bedroom. When she arrived, she toed off her shoes before she grabbed her pajamas and headed into the bathroom. After she'd changed, she washed her face and brushed her teeth before stepping out of the bathroom to find Rick sitting on the bed waiting for her in a pair of pajama pants and nothing else.

Kate tossed her clothes in the direction of the hamper and grabbed Rick's hand, pulling him from the bedroom and to the couch in his study. As she sat down, Rick went over to the DVD player and turned it on.

"What do you want to watch?"

"Can we watch the Sound of Music?"

"Sure. Just give me a sec." Rick said as he picked up the DVD case and went about setting it up to play. When the menu came up, Rick grabbed the remote and made his way to the couch. He grabbed the blanket off the back and used it to cover Kate before he got settled on the other end.

When he was comfortable, Rick looked over at Kate and saw her pouting. "What?" He asked.

"Why are you over there?" She asked, and when her voice came out dangerously close to a whine, Rick knew the chances of her making it through the whole movie were slim.

"Because you stole that corner." Rick replied, as though it was obvious.

"But how are we supposed to cuddle if you're all the way over there?"

Rick laughed and held his arms out. "Come over here if you want to cuddle."

Kate's face instantly broke into a smile, and she hurried to move from one end of the couch to the other. But when she got to where Rick was, she paused. Rick was confused until he realized that she was staring at his leg. Laughing, he lifted it and placed it on the couch on the other side of Kate's body so that she could sit between his legs.

Kate shifted so that her back was pressed firmly to his chest, and she felt her body melt into his as the movie started. Rick set the volume and placed the remote within reach before he wrapped his arms around Kate and pulled her even closer to him.

As the picnic between Governess and children began, Rick heard soft snores, and when he looked down, he found Kate asleep with her mouth slightly open. He stopped the movie and managed to get Kate awake enough get her into the bedroom. He pulled back the covers and tucked her into bed, and as he stood, he pressed a kiss her to her temple.

As he tried to move away, Kate's hand grabbed hold of his arm and held him in place. "Don't go." She mumbled.

Rick chuckled softly. "I'm not. I'm just going to the other side."

Instantly, Kate's hand released his arm, and Rick moved around the bed and got under the covers. He assumed Kate had fallen asleep, so when she reached out and grabbed his hand and started tugging, he couldn't help the laugh that escaped.

"Don't laugh." Kate mumbled. "I just want to cuddle."

Rick smiled and moved closer. "I'm sorry."

"Better be." Kate mumbled into the skin of his neck. "Now shhh. Cuddling doesn't require talking."

Rick resisted the urge to point out that she'd said more than him, but he couldn't stop the smile that crossed his face. He placed one more kiss to Kate's forehead before he pulled her more firmly against his side and fell asleep.

* * *

**So, I happen to like sleepy Kate. Don't hate me if you don't. This one is likely going to have a continuation next chapter, just so you know.**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	10. 51- Option

**So here's the continuation of #91. I think the next chapter might be a continuation of this, but it'll be set further in the future. But I have it already written in my head. I just need to type it out.**

******Hugs and cookies and brownies-not the pot kind- and ice cream and just general goodness and love to saved240307, Caskett1960, TORONTOSUN, Duby34, ladybugsmomma, lyndseysmeltzer, and Micrazy2 for all the continued support. You guys are wonderful, and the only reason some of these chapters have gotten done.**

* * *

**#51 Because he'd like the option**

Kate was in the bathroom getting ready for bed one night when Rick came in and stood by the door. He watched her for a moment, and Kate gave him a slightly timid smile. She knew she was keeping something from him, something big, but she didn't know how to tell him, and the longer she waited, the harder it got.

She put her toothbrush back beside his and turned to grab her pajamas. She was about to start getting dressed when Rick's voice stopped her.

"Is this how it's gonna be now, Kate?" He asked in a harsh tone. "We've been together for a year now, so you can stop trying, is that it?"

"Rick?" She asked, scared and caught off guard by his sudden change in character.

"Did you decide that it was too much work, so you're gonna start pulling away? Or, God, Kate. Are you cheating on me? Because I'm not gonna be able to handle getting cheated on again."

Kate's shirt slipped through her fingers at his accusation. "No!" She hurried to assure him. "I'd never do that to you, Rick."

Rick ran his hand through his hair. "Then what is it, Kate? What did I do wrong? Because we were great, and then you started avoiding me. You go out of your way now to spend as little time with me as possible, and the only reasons I can come up with are that you're cheating on me, or you want me to be the one to end our relationship, and I can assure you, That's not going to be on me."

"No, Rick." Kate said. "I don't want us to end."

"Then why, Kate? Why are you pulling away?"

"I'm pregnant." Kate murmured.

"What?" Rick asked, his sudden shift in tone telling her that he hadn't been expecting that response.

"I'm pregnant."

Rick just stared at Kate, and the longer he went without saying anything, the more nervous she got. Finally after 5 minutes of silence, Kate made a decision.

"I'll go stay with my dad for a bit, give you some time." She waited a beat for Rick to respond, and when he didn't, she let out a small sigh and made her way to the door to pack a bag, doing her best to ignore the rejection washing through her.

When she was at the doorway, Rick's brain finally regained its ability to form words, but the words he said weren't the ones either of them wanted them to be.

"So you're running now? You're just gonna leave me with that and then run away and let me wonder when or if I'll ever see you again?" He asked, his voice icy and bitter, and it stopped Kate cold.

When she turned around, Rick could see the effect his words had had on her, and before he could apologize, before he could do anything, Kate pressed her back to the wall and slid down to the ground. She wrapped her arms around her legs and curled herself into a little ball, and seconds later she was shaking.

"Shit, Kate." Rick mumbled as he found his legs and hurried to her side. He slid down beside her and gently lifted her face up so he could look at her. Her makeup had started running down her face since she hadn't had a chance to take it off yet. Rick reached onto the counter beside them and grabbed the washcloth she'd been about to use. He gently wiped away what he could of her makeup as Kate continued crying.

"I wasn't running." Kate mumbled, her voice broken and dejected.

"Shh." Rick murmured as he set the washcloth on the floor and pulled Kate into his lap so he could wrap his arms around her. "I know, Kate. I know, and I'm sorry I said that."

"You just wer-weren't saying an-anything, an-and I thought you wer-were mad." Kate cried into his shoulder where she'd buried her face. "I th-thought you n-needed time to p-process it, so I was g-gonna stay with my d-dad for the n-night."

Rick continued to murmur soothing words and apologies into Kate's hair while he rubbed circles on her back. After a while, Kate's tears stopped and her breathing evened out. She pulled back to look at Rick, and he used his thumbs to brush the remaining tears from her cheeks.

"I'm sorry." Kate whispered.

"Don't apologize, Kate. I shouldn't have reacted how I did. To any of it. I just- I honestly was expecting you to say that you were just looking for a way out. I didn't think you'd tell me you're pregnant."

"Sorry." Kate murmured again.

"Why didn't you just tell me?" Rick asked after a moment of silence. "Why were you avoiding me?"

Kate sighed. "I thought you'd be mad. I know you said that you'd like the option for more kids, but you never said you'd like the option with _me_, so I thought you wouldn't be happy. And I was worried you'd think I was trying to trap you."

"Trap me?" Rick asked, confused by her choice of words.

Kate nodded. "We're not married, we're not engaged. So I was worried you'd think I'd gotten pregnant on purpose or something." Kate shook her head and blushed. "It's stupid."

Rick smiled. "I don't think any of that." He said.

They were quiet for a moment and Rick's brain continued processing everything that had just happened. "Holy shit!" He exclaimed.

"What?" Kate asked, suddenly worried again.

"You're pregnant!" Rick cried. He wrapped Kate more firmly in his arms and hugged her tightly while he peppered kisses all over her face and neck and anywhere else he could reach.

Kate laughed and managed to get her arms around him. She hugged him back and returned some of his kisses. "I am." She said with a smile.

Rick paused and grew serious again. "We're happy about this, right?" He asked.

Kate leaned in and kissed him passionately. When they broke apart, they were both panting. "We're very happy about this." She answered before she leaned in and kissed him again.

They were so happy, they didn't even make it off the bathroom floor.

* * *

**There you go! Hope you guys liked this, and that you're ok with occasional angst. **

******If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**********I'm gonna be completely honest, guys. I'm kind of hurt by the decrease in reviews over the last couple chapters. I know there are some of you who review all the time, and I appreciate you all. But I had so many reviews for the first few chapters, and then suddenly people just stopped. So it's time to take a vote: Do you guys want me to continue with this story? Or have the chapters become to similar? I'm not normally the kind to beg for reviews, but I really want to know if everyone reading this wants me to continue or not.**


	11. 61- Worth It

**I'm going to warn you now, this chapter was hard for me to write. I've had the idea in my head for a while, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to use it or not. I don't want to give too much away, but I will say that there is a happy ending. It just might take a while to get there.**

**Hugs and cookies and brownies-not the pot kind- and ice cream and just general goodness and love to saved240307, Caskett1960, TORONTOSUN, Duby34, ladybugsmomma, lyndseysmeltzer, and Micrazy2 for all the continued support. You guys are wonderful, and the only reason some of these chapters have gotten done. **

* * *

**#61 Because that's what makes it all worthwhile.**

Rick was sitting in his office writing when he heard Kate's voice, and he knew instantly that something was wrong. He quickly closed his laptop and walked into their bedroom where he found his girlfriend clutching the doorjamb leading to the bathroom.

"Kate?" Rick asked as he walked calmly over to her side. He put his hand gently over her hand on the doorway, and he was slightly surprised when she gripped it tightly. "Kate, what's wrong?"

"I needed to pee." She said quietly as she looked at the floor. "So I got up, and I was almost in the bathroom when..."

She trailed off, and Rick followed her eyes to the floor, and it took him a moment to see the puddle on the floor.

"Kate." He began, his voice strained from trying to remain calm. "Please tell me that you peed your pants."

Kate shook her head. She opened her mouth to answer, but a sudden wave of pain shot through her body, rendering her incapable of words. When it passed, Kate looked up at Rick and saw the fear she felt reflected in his eyes.

They stared at each other for a moment before Rick snapped into action and wrapped an arm around her waist. He led her from the bedroom and into the living room where he helped her sit down while he grabbed shoes for both of them. When they had their shoes on, Rick grabbed his wallet and keys and helped Kate up from the couch and out of the loft.

"Rick." Kate said softly as she gripped his shirt while they waited for the elevator. "Rick, it's-"

"I know, Kate." He said, not wanting to hear the words leave her mouth. 6 months was way to early for their baby to be born.

The elevator ride seemed to take forever, but their car was relatively close to the elevator in the underground garage. Rick helped Kate into the passenger seat and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead before he hurried around the car and got in.

Thankfully, it was relatively late at night in the middle of the week, and most drivers were off the road, so the trip to Lennox Hill was quick. When they arrived, Rick parked close to the emergency room and wrapped an arm around Kate as they walked in.

"Can I help you?" An older nurse asked as she approached the two of them.

Rick took a deep breath and willed himself not to freak out. "My girlfriend just went into labor." He said as calmly as he could manage.

The nurse nodded. "Ok. I understand that you're a little nervous, most first time parents are, but I'm afraid you'll have to go through the front of the hospital."

Rick shook his head. "She's only 6 months pregnant."

Immediately, the nurse went into high gear. She order a wheelchair and instructed Kate to sit down when it arrived. The nurse made to push Kate down the hall, but Rick took over before she got close enough.

"Alright, follow me." She said as she began walking. While they made their way down the hall, the nurse asked some routine questions and wrote down everything Rick told her, promising to get someone on the phone with Kate's doctor immediately. They got to an elevator, which was thankfully already on their floor, and Rick watched as she pushed the button for the maternity ward. The nurse saw him watching her, and offered a small smile. "They'll be able to take better care of her there than we can in emergency." She said softly.

When they emerged, there was already another nurse waiting for them. "Alright, you two." The first nurse said. "This is Megan, and she's gonna take care of you, alright?"

Kate and Rick nodded and bid the old lady farewell. Megan led them down a hallway and into a room, and both Kate and Rick were glad to see that it wasn't meant for more than one patient.

Megan handed Kate a robe and went about setting up the machines. "Go ahead and put that on and get into bed, Kate. We'll call your doctor and see if there's anything we can do to keep your baby in there just a little longer."

Kate nodded and held out a hand for Rick to help her up. When Megan had left so they could have a little privacy, Kate pulled her shirt and pants off and put the gown on before stripping out of her underwear. She handed all of her clothes to Rick and smiled when he put them in the plastic bag Megan had given them.

"Do you want me to call mother and Alexis?" Rick asked as Kate got into bed.

Kate shook her head. "Can we wait until Michelle tells us what's going on? Just in case it's not gonna happen."

Rick nodded and smiled. He made his way over to the bed and sat down in the empty space Kate had left for him. They both knew that this wasn't likely a false alarm, but neither of them wanted to voice that suspicion. They had barely gotten comfortable on the small bed when there was a knock on the door, and a second later, Megan stepped in.

"I'm just here to hook you up to the machines, Kate. Your doctor should be here in about 10 minutes, ok?"

Kate nodded and watched as Megan began placing several wires on various places of Kate's body. When Megan asked for her to lift the gown above her stomach, Kate would have been embarrassed, but she was too worried to focus on trivial things like the two minuscule stretch marks she had. Megan placed a band on top of Kate's stomach, and the rapid sound of a fetal heartbeat soon filled the room, and it made both Kate and Rick relax slightly. When Megan was done, and Kate felt like there wasn't an inch of her not connected to something, they were left alone again.

"I never thought a sound could be so reassuring." Rick murmured after a moment as he rested his hand gently on Kate's stomach.

Kate brought a hand up to lay on top of his and she squeezed it tightly. "Me neither."

They fell into a relative silence for the next few minutes before a distinct tapping sound alerted them to both look at the door, where a second later Kate's doctor was walking in.

"Katherine Beckett, when I said I would see you this week, I meant for an appointment. Not for you to go into labor." Michelle joked.

Kate gave her doctor a weak smile. "Sorry, Doc. Guess you should have been clearer."

Michelle smiled and gave Kate's hand a squeeze before she looked intently at the machines hooked up to Kate's stomach. After a moment, she turned and pulled an ultrasound machine over, and Kate let out a quiet groan. She always hated how cold the gel was.

Michelle grinned at her before she got to work. It was a very quiet and very tense examination, and each noise that left the doctor's mouth had Kate and Rick more on edge. Finally, Michelle turned off the machine and handed Kate some kleenex to wipe off her stomach.

"Well?" Rick asked as Michelle stood at the end of the bed and wrote in Kate's chart.

Michelle sighed and looked up. "Well, you're definitely in labor. You're at about 5 centimeters, and your contractions aren't very far apart."

"What does that mean?" Kate asked, even though she already knew.

Michelle sighed. "It means, there's not much we can do. We can postpone it a little bit with drugs and whatnot, but that won't last for very long. Long story short, you're going to have a new baby soon. By the end of the week at the very latest, but I'd say closer to tomorrow morning or afternoon, at the rate you're going."

There was silence for a while as Rick and Kate absorbed the information. Finally, Kate sighed and grabbed Rick's hand.

"What-" She paused to take a deep breath before forcing herself to ask. "What are the chances?" She couldn't actually voice the chances, not wanting to jinx it, but not wanting to get her hopes up either.

Michelle sighed and squeezed Kate's ankle comfortingly. "As far along as she is, I'd say she's got about a 70 to 75% chance of making it out of this, and growing up just fine."

Kate nodded slowly as her hand came up to rub along the top of her stomach. "Thank you, Michelle." She murmured. She looked up at her doctor- who had managed to become a friend- and offered a watery smile.

Michelle nodded and squeezed Kate's ankle once more before she left. As soon as the door closed, Rick let out a sigh and dropped his head to rest on the side of Kate's stomach. He pressed his lips to her skin gently, and Kate moved her hand to run her fingers through the hair on the back of his head.

"You should probably call them." She finally whispered.

Rick picked his head up and gave her a sad smile before he rose and kissed her temple. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and walked into the hall. After talking to a nurse passing by, Rick made his way to a quiet waiting area that only held three other people.

"Hello?" Alexis said as she answered her phone.

"Hi." Rick said as he tried to keep his voice from cracking. But Alexis heard it, and she was suddenly on high alert.

"Dad? What's going on?"

Rick sighed. "I need you and Mother to go to the loft. Get two bags and pack some clothes for Kate and I, and grab a couple things from the baby's dresser too."

"Dad?" Alexis asked, her voice shaky. "You're scaring me."

Rick sighed. "Kate went into labor early, Pumpkin."

"Oh no." Alexis said. "Can't they do anything?"

Rick shook his head, even though she couldn't see it. "Not for long."

"Ok. I'm leaving now, and I'll call Gram and let her know. We'll be there soon."

"Thanks, Pumpkin." Rick said as he felt tears prickling at his eyes. "I love you."

"I love you, too. Give Kate a hug for me, ok?"

"Yeah." Rick said before he hung up.

He let his head drop forward for a moment before he opened his contact list again and searched through the names before selecting the one he wanted.

"Rick?" Jim asked when he answered the phone. "Is Katie ok?"

"I'm not really sure, Jim."

"What happened?" The older man asked, instantly going on alert.

"She went into labor early. Her doctor said there's not much they can do to postpone it, so it looks like you'll get your granddaughter for Christmas after all." Rick said, trying to make light of the situation.

Jim laughed weakly. "Where are you?"

"Lennox Hill." Rick answered.

"I'll be there soon." Jim said before he hung up.

Rick took a deep breath and stood to go back to Kate's room. He was stopped when a hand landed on his forearm. He looked over and saw one of the two ladies he'd seen when he first entered.

"Christmas has a way of bringing us miracles." She said with a smile. "Even when the odds seem long."

Rick was surprised at first, but he recovered quickly and gave her the best smile he could. "Thank you." He murmured.

She nodded before turning and walking back to the man and woman she'd been waiting with. Rick took another moment to compose himself before he made his way back to Kate's room. She looked up when he entered the room and tried to smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Are they on their way?" She asked.

"Yeah. Your dad too."

Kate instantly shook her head. "No. Call him back and tell him not to come, Rick."

"What? Why?" He asked, surprised by her reaction.

"I won't make him lose another family member around Christmas, Rick. Call him and tell him not to come. If she pulls through this, then he can see her."

"Kate." Rick said softly as he grabbed her hand and used his free hand to wipe the tears from her cheeks. "If- God forbid- she doesn't make it, he'll already have lost her. He knows about her now, has since we told everyone. It'll be just as painful, no matter where he is. This way, we're all together."

Kate looked at him for a moment before she finally nodded. "Ok. But no one comes in here, got it? No one besides you and Michelle. And the nurses. But not if they're bringing me ice chips."

Rick cracked a smile, one that came closer to reaching his eyes, but it still fell short. "Whatever you say, Kate."

Rick's phone buzzed a few minutes later, and he stood up to go greet his mother and daughter. He found them standing in the hall not far from Kate's room.

"Dad!" Alexis cried as she hurried over to him and hugged him tightly.

"Hi, Pumpkin." He replied as he kissed her.

"How are you holding up, Darling?" Martha asked as she hugged her son.

"I've been better. It's not the easiest thing to hear."

Martha nodded sympathetically. "Here are the bags." She said as she set them on the floor. "We didn't know what to pack, so we got you both clothes for a few days."

Rick nodded. "Thanks, Mother."

"Can I see Kate?" Alexis asked, anxious to see the woman who'd been more of a mother to her in the last 6 years than her own mother had her entire life.

"Not right now, Alexis." Rick said with a sad shake of his head.

"Why?" She asked.

Rick sighed. "You don't need to see her like this, Alexis. And she doesn't want anyone else to see her like this either."

Alexis was about to respond, about to say that she didn't care what Kate looked like, when another voice interrupted.

"Rick!" Jim called as he hurried across the floor to the little group.

"Hi, Jim." Rick said as he shook the man's hand. "Sorry to see you like this."

Jim shrugged. "Is Katie ok?"

"As ok as I'd expect her to be right now. I'm sorry, I know you want to see her, all of you, but she's not-" Rick broke off to sigh. "She's not in a great emotional place right now, and she can't handle it."

Jim nodded. "I expected as much. Just let her know I'm here if she needs anything."

Rick smiled. "I will. I should really get back in there though."

All three people nodded, and after asking Alexis to call Ryan, Esposito, and Lanie, Rick turned and walked back into Kate's room with the bags.

"Hey." He said softly.

Kate's eyes blinked open. "Hi." She said softly, her voice still rough from crying.

"Your dad is here. Said to let him know if you need anything, ok? Same with Mother and Alexis. And the boys and Lanie are on their way."

Kate nodded. "Thanks."

Rick nodded and sat on the edge of Kate's bed and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "How are you feeling?"

Kate sighed. "I keep thinking that I should have been able to avoid this, you know?"

"Kate, you can't blame yourself." Rick said gently.

"It's hard not to. We created this little person together, you know? And for the last 6 months, she's been perfectly safe. But suddenly, she's not. Suddenly, there's nothing I can do to protect her anymore."

"I know." Rick murmured.

The door opened and Megan came back in with what Kate assumed were the drugs to postpone the delivery. "We can do this, and give you a couple more hours, or we can see what will happen naturally. It's up to you."

Kate and Rick exchanged a look, and Kate turned back to the nurse. "We'll take our chances." She murmured.

Megan nodded and after she checked the machines surrounding Kate, she turned and left the room with the drugs in tow.

"You sure you don't want them?" Rick asked.

Kate shook her head. "Postponing it a few hours won't help."

Rick nodded and went back to tracing patterns into the skin of Kate's stomach. a few minutes later, he got another text, letting him know that Lanie and the boys had arrived.

"Do you want Lanie to come in?" He asked as he stood up.

Kate thought for a moment before she shook her head. Rick kissed her softly before turning and going out into the hall.

The encounter with Lanie, Espo, and Kevin was very similar to the one with his mother, daughter, and Jim had been. They wanted to see her, and Rick had to say no, and answer their questions. Just when he was about to ask everyone to leave, just so he didn't have to keep going over it over and over again, Michelle came down the hallway and gestured for Rick to follow her into Kate's room. Rick apologized to their friends before turning and entering the room behind the doctor.

Michelle was already at Kate's bed, and Rick could tell things weren't going well.

"What's wrong?" He asked as he came to stand by Kate's side.

"She needs to start pushing. She's fully dilated and ready to go."

"Except for the fact that it's three months early." Kate said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Michelle sighed. "True. But I've already told you, Kate. You're not going to make it to your due date. And you can't keep that baby in there indefinitely. It's going to do more harm than good in the long run."

"So I'll do it for the shirt run." Kate said stubbornly.

Michelle was about to reply, but Rick cut in. "Can we have a moment? Is that ok?"

Michelle sighed as she looked to the clock. "I can only give you five minutes. Then we have to get started."

Rick nodded, and smiled in thanks as Michelle gave them the time they needed.

As soon as they were alone, the tears began pouring from Kate's eyes. "Rick, please." She asked.

"I don't know what you want me to do, Kate. You know Michelle's right. If you don't deliver soon, she could be in even more danger."

"But she's safe where she is!" Kate said. "She's been safe there for 6 months."

Rick pulled Kate into his arms and held her tightly. "I know, Kate. But things change. And the longer she stays in there now, the less safe it is."

"But it's too soon, Rick. She's too little." Kate cried into his shoulder.

Rick pulled away and wiped some of the tears away with his thumbs. "I know, Kate. I know she's going to be tiny, and I know that she's going to have a rough time, and I'm scared too, I really am. I terrified that we might lose her. But they have medicine and science and lots of other things that can help her, but not until she's here, ok?"

"But science fails." Kate said softly. "What if it's not enough?"

Rick kissed Kate's forehead. "Then she's our daughter. You got shot, Kate. A bullet went through your heart. We were locked in a freezer together. We nearly got blown up by a dirty bomb. You nearly fell off a building. I was held hostage multiple times. I nearly got blown up but lots of C4 one of those times. But that's us. We always make it through, and now is no different. She's our daughter, and she's gonna be a fighter. You know that."

Kate nodded. "I'm still so scared, Rick." She mumbled.

"I know. I'm scared too. But Michelle hasn't lied to us yet, so what do you say we listen to her one more time?"

Kate looked at him for a moment before she finally nodded, just as the door opened and Michelle walked in, followed by a group of nurses.

"Are you ready to do this, Kate?" Michelle asked.

"No." Kate answered. "But if this was three months later, I'd still say no."

Michelle nodded. "Alright. I just want to tell you a few things first. As soon as she's born, Megan and Alice," Michelle gestured to the two nurses. "Are going to take her to NICU, where they'll clean her up and get her settled in an incubator. Her lungs aren't going to be fully developed, which means you won't hear here cry. And I know that's going to scare you, but I need you to try to stay calm, ok?"

Kate nodded as her grip on Rick's fingers tightened.

Michelle nodded in response. "Ok, then. Let's get a baby born."

And so it began. On each contraction, Kate was instructed to push, and after not much time at all, Kate slumped back in the pillows as she watched Michelle had her daughter off to Megan. The nurse paused long enough to check the baby for a pulse, and the smile that lit up Megan's face was enough to calm Kate as she watched them slide a tube down her baby's throat. When the nurses confirmed that the little girl was breathing, they set her in an incubator and Megan and Alice wheeled her out. One of the remaining nurses cleaned up where the baby had just been while the other took the wires off Kate's stomach, while leaving the ones connecting her to the heart monitor on.

"Alright. You two sit tight for a little while, ok? I'm gonna go check on your little girl." Michelle said.

After she received nods from the both of them, she smiled and left the room. Rick settled onto the bed beside Kate, and she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Tell me she's gonna be ok, Rick." Kate asked softly.

"She'll be just fine, Kate. Then we'll get to take her home and mess her up ourselves."

Kate laughed softly. "We need to name her." She finally said.

Rick nodded. "Well, we already kind of have a name."

Kate hummed in agreement. "We have initials."

"That we're going to call her by."

"But initials need names."

"Alright. AJ, what names do you have in mind?"

"Not Johannah." Kate said instantly.

"You sure?" Rick asked.

Kate nodded. "I'm sure. Unless nothing else fits."

"So first name first?"

Kate nodded. "Ashley?"

"Negative. Annabelle?"

"God, no. Alyssa?"

"Nope. Annie?"

"No. Amy?"

"Not happening. Abigail?"

"I like that." Kate said.

"Me too. Middle name?"

"Jessica?"

"Nope, doesn't fit. Jennifer?"

"That fits better? Jolene?"

"As in Dolly Parton? No. Jodie?"

"Not likely. Jordyn?"

"With a y?" Rick asked.

Kate nodded. "I like a little variety."

Rick laughed. "I like it. Abigail Jordyn Castle. It's good."

Kate nodded. "It is. Let's just hope she gets to use it."

"Hey." Rick said. "None of that, ok? You saw Megan's smile, she was doing good when they took her away."

Kate sighed. "I know."

Rick stood up. "I'm gonna go let everyone know, ok? You get some rest, and then hopefully we'll get to see her soon."

Kate nodded and closed her eyes while Rick went to go talk to their friends.

* * *

"Daddy?" A quiet voice whispered from behind him.

Rick turned around and smiled when he saw his daughter. Her chesnut hair was done in two french braids that reached to the middle of her back, and she was clutching her teddy bear tightly.

"What are you doing up, AJ?" He asked quietly.

The little girl walked around the couch he was sitting on and stood in front of him. "Why Momma sad?" She asked.

Rick smiled. "She's not sad, AJ."

AJ nodded her head vigorously. "When she finished my hair, she started crying. Why she sad?"

Rick smiled as he pulled his daughter into his lap. "They were happy tears, Sweetie."

"Promise?"

"I do. You know how we told you that you were small when you were born?"

"Uh-huh. I was itty bitty!" AJ exclaimed.

Rick smiled. "You were. And you got very sick a few days later, and Momma and I thought we were gonna lose you. So sometimes, Momma cries because we didn't, and we're both so very happy about that."

"So Momma not sad 'bout Christmas?"

Rick shook his head. "No, she's not."

"You know what's special about Christmas, Daddy?" AJ asked.

"What?"

"It's also my birthday!"

"Yes, it is. And it's also late, AJ. Which means you need to go to sleep, or you won't get any presents tomorrow."

AJ's face turned into one of pure horror. "Daddy, tuck me in! I want presents!"

Rick laughed and stood up with AJ in his arms. He turned and carried her up the stairs, stopping in the bathroom where Kate was still cleaning up from AJ's bath.

"Goodnight, Momma." AJ said as she scurried over and hugged her mother.

Kate put the bath toys she was holding in their bucket and hugged her daughter back. "Goodnight, AJ. I'll see you tomorrow, ok?"

AJ nodded. "It's my birthday tomorrow, Momma. And Christmas!"

Kate smiled and kissed AJ's cheek. "I know, baby. But you don't get presents if you don't go to sleep."

AJ scurried back to Rick and he lifted her into his arms and left the bathroom and started down the hall to AJ's room.

After he'd tucked her in and read her a story, AJ easily fell asleep, and Rick sat by her bed and watched her sleep for a bit.

"Staring is creepy, Castle." Kate murmured from the doorway.

Rick turned to look at her and smiled. He held his hand out and Kate crossed the room to sit on his lap as they watched their daughter. "It might be creepy, but I can't help it. I was so worried we wouldn't get to this."

Kate smiled sadly and kissed his temple softly. "Me too."

The fact that AJ was as vibrant as she was still surprised her parents nearly everyday. A few days after she'd been born, she'd gotten sick and on two particularly scary occasions, she'd stopped breathing. But now, nearly 4 years to the day later, the only evidence that AJ had been born early was that she was slightly shorter and skinnier than most kids her age.

They watched her for another moment, before Kate decided it was time for them to go to bed as well. She stood up and kissed her daughter's head once more before pulling Rick to his feet and leading him from the room and down the stairs. They flicked off lights as they made their way through the loft and into Rick's study.

"She's our little miracle." Rick murmured. "It kind of makes everything that happened worth it, doesn't it?"

"She certainly is." Kate said as they walked past a picture of the three of them. It had been taken the year before, on AJ's third birthday, and AJ was smiling as her parents kissed both her cheeks. It was adorable, and never failed to make Rick and Kate smile. Kate stopped and picked it up so they could look at it for a moment. "And she makes everything more than worth it."

Rick chuckled softly as he followed Kate through the doorway and into their bedroom.

* * *

**So I gave you a happy ending, and this story kind of got away from me. So hopefully you don't mind that it's super long. Before you go criticizing me for all the medical stuff I got wrong, please note that I'm not going to be 19 for another few weeks. I've never had a baby, and I've never been at the hospital when someone I know has had a baby. Let alone having a baby born three months early. So I don't really know what happens, aside from what I've seen on Grey's Anatomy, and we all know that show isn't the most accurate. So please, don't start yelling at me if I got something wrong. **

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**So please just let me know your thoughts, so I can stop stressing and worrying that you guys don't like my story anymore. **


	12. 6- Feelings

**Alright, TORONTOSUN, I finally got this done. It turned out a bit different than we'd talked about, but hopefully you still like it.**

**This turned into a kind of post-ep for Still, set the day after or some other time when Rick wouldn't freak out about not seeing Kate constantly.**

**And thank you to every who reviewed after my little moment of insecurity. You guys made my day, and I had a ridiculous smile on my face, so thank you. Also, thank you all for putting this story over 100 reviews, it really means a lot.**

* * *

**#6 Because she did have feelings for him when they first met.**

"Hey, Lanie." Kate said as she slid into the booth at the Old Haunt.

"Nu-uh." Lanie said as she glared at Kate. "You don't get to say 'hey, Lanie' after what happened yesterday."

Kate just stared at her friend. "Really? First girl's night in weeks and _that's_ what you want to talk about?"

Lanie nodded. "I heard some interesting stories about what went on during all of that."

"We're so not doing this now." Kate murmured.

Lanie smirked as she pushed a drink toward Kate. "Don't worry, I've got you covered."

Kate rolled her eyes, but lifted the fruity concoction to her lips and took a drink.

* * *

"Thanks for calling, Brian." Rick said as he walked into the bar. "Where is she?"

"She was pretty sleepy, so I sent her down to your office to sleep on the couch." The bartender answered.

Rick thanked him again and walked down the stairs into his office. He paused when he entered as he took a moment to watch Kate sleep, even if she found it creepy.

She was curled into a ball in the middle of the couch with her hair spread around her in a sort of halo. After allowing himself a moment to just watch her, Rick walked over to the couch and crouched by her head.

"Kate, wake up." He said quietly as he moved a piece of hair out of her face.

"Mmm. Rick?" Kate murmured as she slowly came to.

"Hi, Sleeping Beauty. You and Lanie have fun tonight?"

Kate nodded against the couch but made no move to sit up. "Drank a lot."

"That's what Brian told me. Said you were sleepy when Lanie left, so he sent you down here to sleep until I got here."

Kate nodded again, and Rick shifted so he was sitting on the couch by her head. Kate noticed this and scooted her way up the couch until her head was resting on Rick's lap, and she let out a sleep sigh.

Rick chuckled and gently ran his fingers through her hair. "Don't you want to go home and sleep?"

"No. Too comfy." Kate replied.

Rick smiled but didn't answer. They were quiet for a while, and Rick decided it wouldn't hurt to let Kate get a little bit of sleep on his couch, since she hadn't had much luck sleeping since the bomb.

"We talked about you." Kate said out of nowhere, and Rick smiled as his favorite Kate came out. The sleepy kind that liked to snuggle and shared random pieces of information that normal Kate wouldn't.

"You and Lanie?"

"Mmm. We talk about you a lot."

"Oh?" Rick asked, even though he was well aware of the fact that the two women often exchanged stories of their boyfriends.

"Yup. She wanted to know what happened in the apartment. So I told her about our discussion."

"Is that what we're calling it?" Rick asked.

"I just did."

"What did she have to say about it?"

"She thought it was cute. Wanted to know how long I was able to keep the truth from you."

"The truth?" Rick asked, even more intrigued.

"That I've had feelings for you for years. Really since before we met."

"You did?" Rick asked. He knew she was a fan, but apparently her feelings went deeper than that.

"Thought you were cute. Then we met and I thought you were an ass. But you were still cute. And I wanted to sleep with you."

"You did?" Rick asked, surprised to hear this revelation.

Kate nodded against his thigh. "Yup. Wanted to do all sorts of things to you."

"So you did have feelings for me when we first met." Rick said triumphantly.

It was as if those were the magic words, because Kate suddenly sat bolt upright. She turned to look at Rick, and at the smug look on his face, she hung her head. "Shit." She cursed.

"In all fairness, you started talking about it first." Rick pointed out, just in case she was planning on being mad.

"I know. But you took advantage of me being tired."

"Maybe." Rick admitted. "But you still said the words on your own. It's ok, you know. I'm not judging you. It's hard to resist me."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Just for that, I'm going home alone."

"How are you gonna get there?" Rick asked. "You can't drive."

"Shit." Kate said again. "Fine, I'll forgive you."

When their eyes met, Rick knew she'd been joking the whole time. He leaned in and kissed her gently, smiling when Kate melted into him.

"For the record." Rick said as he pulled back. "I wanted to sleep with you at first too."

Kate smiled. "I know. Everyone knows."

Rick shrugged and leaned in for another kiss. He really didn't care, not when he was allowed to kiss Kate whenever he wanted.

* * *

**So, I know it's slightly different than we'd planned, but I hope that's ok. For everyone else, I hope you guys liked it.**

******If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	13. 62- Excuses- Kate

Kate rolled over onto her back and her eyes snapped open. With a sigh, she turned her head and glanced over at the clock on her nightstand. 12:03, perfect.

Kate sighed again as she rolled onto her stomach and stretched her legs. With another huff, she sat up and glared at her bed. It shouldn't be this difficult to fall asleep. She was tired and there was nothing on her mind. She should have been completely asleep by now.

Except for the part where she was at her apartment and Rick was at the loft.

They weren't fighting, but Kate had been worried that Gates was catching on, so when Rick offered to walk her out of the precinct, she'd declined, knowing that he'd understand that she just needed a little space, and would let him know when she was ready to see him.

It was the first night in nearly a week and a half that Kate was sleeping at her apartment at all, and that in and of itself was slightly terrifying to her. She'd never spent that much time at a former boyfriend's house, but now she often found herself thinking of the loft as home. It wasn't bad, it was just... different.

But regardless, it didn't solve the issue of her body's inability to fall asleep with Rick next to her. Part of her wanted to just get out of bed and go to the loft and crawl into bed with him, but a slightly larger part managed to convince herself to have him come to her. She knew he would anyway.

So Kate reached out to the nightstand and grabbed her phone and quickly unlocked it before bringing up her recent calls, unsurprised to see that Rick's name was the most prevalent. After another brief internal battle, Kate tapped his name and couldn't help the smile that crossed her face as it started dialing.

After the first ring, Kate started mentally berating herself. _This was stupid. He's most likely asleep. And even if he's not, what's gonna make him wanna come over here? I should just hang up now. I really should just-_

"Mmf. 'ello?" A gruff voice answered.

"Rick?" Kate asked tentatively.

"Kate? Wass wrong?"

Suddenly, Kate didn't want to tell him that she couldn't sleep over the phone. "I just-" Kate sighed. "Can you come over?"

Instantly, Rick sounded more alert and awake. "Of course. I'll be over in a few minutes."

"See you soon." Kate replied before the line went dead.

With another sigh, Kate pulled herself out of bed and wandered into her living room to wait for him. She knew he had a key, but he would probably knock, just to let her know he was here.

Kate sat down on her couch and pulled her legs close to her body where she was able to wrap her arms around her knees and rest her head on her arms. As she sat waiting for Rick, she couldn't stop thinking about how stupid it was that after only a few months of being together, she couldn't fall asleep without him holding her. A former version of herself would have laughed and told her to get her life together. But now, Kate found that she didn't care as much as she once would have.

After about 15 minutes, Kate heard a knock on her door, immediately followed by the sound of keys being inserted, and a moment later, Rick was pushing open the door to her apartment.  
"Kate?" He called softly.

Rick's eyes scanned the apartment before they landed on Kate's body curled up on the couch.

"Kate? Are you ok?" He asked as he raced over to her. When he reached her, he gently placed his hands on her cheeks and brushed his thumbs along her cheekbones.

"Kate?" He asked softly.

Kate stared at him while she tried to figure out why he looked so worried. It was then that she realized how her side of the phone call must have sounded. "Oh my god, Rick! I'm so sorry. I didn't really think about what I was saying on the phone. I'm fine, honestly." Kate hurried to assure him.

"You're sure?" Rick asked skeptically.

"Well, physically, I'm fine."

"Mentally?" Rick hedged.

Kate sighed and stared at the floor. "I can't sleep." She whispered.

"It's ok, Kate." Rick started.

"No, not like that. I'm not thinking too much or anything. It's just... my sheets are cold." She finally mumbled.

"Kate?" Rick asked.

Kate looked up and couldn't help but smile. It was clear that she'd woken him up. His hair was rumpled form bed and his eyes weren't as bright as they normally were, and Kate figured that as soon as she was able to get him into her bed, he'd be asleep.

Once again, Kate sighed before speaking, feeling more and more stupid with each word. "My sheets are cold. I've gotten so used to you being there at night that now my sheets feel like Antarctica. And I can't fall asleep because my sheets are like Antarctica, and my bed is too big for just me." Kate mumbled in a rush.

Rick chuckled softly as he moved himself so that he was sitting on the couch next to Kate.

"I was about to go to the loft, but then my brain noticed that I haven't woken up here in nearly a week and a half, and I just really want to wake up in my own apartment, but I wanted to have you hold me, and having you come here was the only way I cold think of for both of those things to happen." Kate finished.

Rick smiled down at her before pulling her into his arms and standing up, earning a soft squeak of surprise from Kate when he lifted her from the couch and started carrying her down the hall to her bedroom.

When they arrived, Rick set her down on the bed before climbing in behind her. Once they were settled semi-comfortably, Rick pulled Kate into his arms and pulled the blankets over their shoulders. Kate turned so that she was facing Rick and scooted as close as she could without breaking the laws of physics. When she was as close as possible, Kate rested her head on Rick's shoulder, smiling when she felt his arms wind around her waist and pull her even more tightly against his body.

"Thank you for coming, Rick." Kate murmured as she felt her eyes drifting shut.

"Always." Rick replied as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Now sleep." He added.

Kate kissed his chest once before following his instructions.

* * *

**So this is kinda short, but I hope you guys like it anyway.  
taytay.1895.1 Don't worry, I haven't forgotten the story you asked for. I'm just trying to make is super wonderfully amazing. I'll have it up in a few days, at the latest.  
Everyone else, please please please please ****_please_**** send me story ideas if you have them. It might take me a while to get it out, but I will do my best to write what you ask for.  
Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	14. 46- Stop

**I want to take a moment to thank everyone who's reviewed this story. This is now my most reviewed story, and I can't tell you guys how much that means to me. But please, don't stop reviewing now! We're only at chapter 16, so we've got lots more to go.**

**Also, thank you to Duby34 for your continued support, and for not getting mad when I used your video as inspiration without asking you first. I'm glad you like it so far.**

**One more thing. This is a kind of extended scene for the 3rd season finale when Rick pulls Kate from the hangar, because I just re-watched the episode today. And when I re-watched Rise, I was inserting 'and then we can make babies' (or whatever variation worked.) whenever Rick or Kate said something important to each other. That's normal, right?**

* * *

**#46 Because he's the only one who can make her stop**

As Rick carried Kate from the hangar, he struggled to keep his arms around her as she did her best to fight him off. Hearing her voice so broken as she tried to get away was almost enough to make him let her go, but he knew in the back of his mind that it wouldn't end well, and that was all that kept his arms around her as he took her away.

But when they were in the clear, he couldn't keep his arms around her any longer, so he backed her up against the car he'd brought and used that to help him. She was still crying out, so Rick covered her mouth, desperate for her to quiet down, because if any of the men came back here, they were in serious trouble.

Finally, he managed to get her to quiet down, but her eyes made his heart ache. They were full of unshed tears, and Rick knew he was partly responsible for their presence. He brought his free hand up to her face and stroked his thumb over her cheekbones in an effort to keep her calm and quiet. Kate seemed to understand the urgency to keep quiet, and she nodded subtly. Rick dropped his hand from her mouth, but left the other by her face, unaware that it had been partially buried in her hair.

Suddenly, gunshots rang out, and they froze. It was over in a matter of seconds, and Rick was once again fighting to keep Kate in place. She fought against him for as long as she could, but eventually she fell limp against him again. Her hands were fisted in his shirt, and Rick realized that he was all that was keeping her upright. It was silent for another moment, and then another gunshot rang out.

Instantly, Rick knew it was over, and he knew what he would find. So he let Kate go and watched for a moment as she ran back into the hangar, and a second later, he was following her. He found her crouched over the man who'd been her mentor and her friend, and he decided to give her a moment to grieve. But then he heard he sirens, and he knew that if they were discovered with Montgomery, there would be questions, and he knew neither of them were keen on others finding out what had happened.

So he crouched down, and after a moment, he convinced Kate to stand, and he led her back out the door and to his car. As they drove away, he saw her turn back to try and get one last look at their captain, but Rick was more interested in getting her home. Of course, he would have rather taken her back to the loft, where she wouldn't be alone, but he couldn't do that.

Not yet.

* * *

**I know it's really short, but it was intended to be an expansion of a scene we didn't really get to see, so it couldn't have been very long.**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Feel free to follow me on Twitter at AllyLobster. If your Twitter name isn't similar to your FF name, just send me a PM and let me know, since I have to approve people to follow me, and that way I won't decline someone on accident.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	15. 20- Gun

**#20 Because she'd use her gun on his mother**

A crash from the living room startled Kate from her sleep. She sat up in bed, and another thump caused Rick to sit up beside her.

"What was that?" He whispered.

"No idea. I'm gonna go make sure the girls are alright. Stay behind me."

Rick nodded and watched as Kate slipped from the bed and went to her lockbox and quietly withdrew her gun. Rick climbed out of the bed and followed along behind her as she crept through the office. She paused in the doorway to the living room and they watched as a figure moved about the room, seemingly comfortable while still stumbling over the toys their daughters had left lying on the floor before bed.

"NYPD, freeze." Kate called.

The figure stopped and turned, hands raised to show they meant no harm. Kate walked into the living room, while Rick went off to the side and flicked on a light switch. Instantly, Kate felt like laughing.

"Mother?" Rick asked, clearly confused.

"Hello darlings. Sorry to wake you, but I've been searching for a rather important costume, and I thought maybe I'd left it here when I moved out."

At that, Kate did laugh as she lowered her gun. "Sorry, Martha."

Martha shook her head and waved a hand in their direction. "No worries, Darlings."

Kate laughed again as she turned and pulled Rick behind her back to their bedroom. She knew Martha would try not to wake the girls, and that she'd lock the door on her way out.

"Goodnight, Richard, Katherine." Martha called as she walked up the stairs.

Kate and Rick returned the sentiment as they entered the office and made their way back to their bedroom.

"I'm still touched that you'd use your gun on her." Rick said as they drifted off to sleep.

"Yeah, well, next time she comes in in the middle of the night, I just might." Kate replied. "You need to have a talk with her about normal hours."

"Why me?" Rick asked.

"Because I'm the one with the gun." Kate replied as she kissed his cheek and rested her head on his chest.

"Fair point." Rick murmured as he wrapped his arms around Kate and fell asleep.

* * *

**I know it's another short one, but I wanted to get it out to you. Future chapters will be longer, I promise. And yes, I snuck another daughter in for them. If everything goes as I've planned, you'll learn more about her, and AJ too, in later chapters. Thanks to Sheffield93 for the prompt, I hope I did ok.**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	16. 7- Fooling

**Sorry for the long delay, guys. So assuming you've all seen the new episode, how about THAT scene? You guys know which one I mean... it was nice, right?** **If I owned Castle, we would have definitely gotten a look at what happened after. Because if I owned Castle, it would be an HBO show, so we actually ****_could_**** see that kind of thing. Ah, wishful thinking.**

* * *

**#7 Because they aren't fooling anyone**

_Meet me in the closet by the stairs in three minutes. BE SUBTLE!_

Rick looked at the note again and smiled. It had been nearly three minutes since Kate had slipped it into his hand and walked toward the closet. Rick checked his watch and was about to stand to meet Kate when Ryan cursed behind him.

"What's up, Ryan?"

"Printer's out of Paper." Ryan said as he started making his way to the supply closet. The closet Kate was waiting for Rick in.

Rick jumped up and stopped the detective. "I'll get it, Ryan." He offered.

Ryan looked at him for a moment before he nodded slowly. "Thanks."

Rick nodded in response and turned toward the closet. He flicked his eyes to the sides before opening the door and stepping in.

"Took you long enough." Kate said before she was on him, lips crashing into his.

Rick's hands immediately went to her hips and tugged them closer to her own, swallowing that groan she let out at the sensation.

"Sorry. Had to stop Ryan from coming in here."

Kate pulled back slightly. "What?"

"Printer's out of paper. That's why I'm in here."

Kate nodded and kissed him again. "It can wait." She murmured against his skin.

Rick grabbed one of her legs and hoisted it around his hip in response, and Kate took the opportunity to jump up and wrap her other leg around him. Rick caught her easily and planted his hands firmly on her ass, squeezing slightly when Kate pulled her lips away from his and began kissing down his neck. Rick walked over to a conveniently placed shelf and set Kate on it, freeing his hands to begin unbuttoning her shirt. They didn't really have time to get completely undressed, but the more skin he could reach, the better.

Kate's hands began working on his belt and the button of his pants, and a moment later, Rick's jeans and boxers were around his ankles while his mouth fused to the top of Kate's breast. She threw her head back and gripped his hair tightly as he sucked on the smooth flesh and his fingers easily popped the button on her pants. Rick pulled away long enough to tug her pants down and off, and Kate was pulling her underwear to the side as she tugged Rick back to his place between her legs.

He slid easily into her and they muffled each other's groans with their mouths as Rick began moving inside of Kate. She had her legs wrapped tightly around his waist, and his hands were gripping her hips so tightly that she knew there would be bruises later.

Rick sped up his thrusts when he heard Kate make a keening sound in the back of her throat, and he knew she was just as close as he was. He reached a finger between them, and it only took one circle of his fingers between her legs to send her over the edge, pulling him along with her.

When they could breathe again, Rick slid out of Kate, causing her moan at the loss, but he felt her lips curl into a smile when he kissed her sweetly. They pulled apart and began redressing, exchanging soft kisses every now and then. When they were dressed, they looked each other over, and once they decided they looked slightly presentable- because totally presentable goes out the window after you have sex in a closet- Kate handed Rick a package of printer paper and kissed his lips softly yet again.

"Act normal when you give Ryan the paper. And get that smile off your face."

"What smile?"

"The I-just-fucked-my-girlfriend-in-a-closet-while-we-w ere-working smile." Kate answered, but Rick knew by the way her eyes shined that she loved when they had sex somewhere in the precinct.

Rick shook his head and leaned in for another kiss before he turned and walked out of the closet. Ryan gave him a strange look when he took the paper, but he didn't comment, so Rick didn't worry about it. Then Rick went into the break room and started making coffee for himself and Kate.

When he was halfway through, Kate came in and joined him, placing a hand on the small of his back. Rick turned and smiled at her as he handed her the coffee cup, and she took it with a dazzling smile of her own.

* * *

Out in the bullpen, Esposito and Ryan watched as Kate slipped out of the closet with a small smile on her face. She walked through the bullpen and into the break room, and they watched as she spoke softly with Rick.

"Do they really think they have us fooled?" Esposito asked. "I mean, they're not being very subtle."

"I touched the paper Rick gave me." Was all Ryan could say before he turned to his desk and washed his hands with hand sanitizer four times.

If they'd been dong what he thought they were doing in that closet, he didn't need to touch anything else they handed him for the rest of the day.

* * *

**So yeah. I wrote this a while ago, but it got lost, so I tried to rewrite it. I hope it's ok.**

**Feel free to fangirl/boy about the newest episode in a review, since I don't really have people to freak out about Castle with. Also, follow me on Twitter AllyLobster, but if your handle is different than your screen name here, just let me know so I don't accidentally delete you.**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have quite a few planned out, but there are some that I'll need help with. So if you've got any ideas, please let me know. If I don't have something planned out already, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	17. 16- Stayed

**#16 Because he stayed**

"That's not the point, Rick!" Kate yelled, fed up with this.

"Then what is, Kate?" Rick asked. "Because clearly I'm missing something."

"Don't do that." Kate said angrily.

"Do what?"

"Don't act like you have no clue what's going on!"

"I don't! I have no idea why you're so upset!"

"Really? You don't think it has something to do with those girls?"

"That's what this is about? Kate, you know I was trying to ignore them!"

"And they still managed to give you their numbers?"

"It's what happens! You know that, you've known it ever since we met, so why is it bothering you now?"

Kate rolled her eyes. "So it's my fault?" She asked.

"I didn't say that!" Rick exclaimed. He ran his fingers through his hair and looked around her living room.

"You might as well have." Kate replied.

"What do you want from me, Kate? I apologized, and I didn't even do anything wrong!"

"Maybe you should just leave." Kate said quietly.

Rick had opened his mouth to reply, but he snapped it shut when he heard her words. "No." He finally said as he moved to the couch and sat down.

"What?" Kate asked, annoyed that he wouldn't leave like she'd told him to.

"I'm not running away because we had a fight. I'll sleep on the couch tonight if you want to be alone, but I'm not leaving. Not like this."

Kate sighed and shook her head. "Fine, whatever." She said as she turned and walked to her bedroom, shutting the door loudly.

Rick sighed as he reclined on the couch and pulled the blanket off the back. He understood why she was upset, but they'd been dating for a few months, and this wasn't the first time something like this had happened. Sure she always got upset, but she'd never blamed him for it.

But Rick knew better than to dwell on it when Kate wasn't willing to talk about it, so he shifted slightly and closed his eyes.

* * *

3 hours later, Rick was brought out of his fairly light sleep when he heard Kate's bedroom door open, followed by her footsteps as she approached the couch.

"Rick?" She asked softly.

He made a grunting noise that he hoped encouraged her to continue. He curled his feet further into his body so she had somewhere to sit, and a moment later the couch dipped as she lowered herself onto it.

"I'm sorry." She murmured. "I know you didn't ask them to do it, and I know you weren't encouraging them. I just get so upset when people act like our relationship is nothing. Like we're not serious about each other."

"So you decided that blaming me was the best decision?" Rick asked, unable to keep all the hurt out of his voice.

"I guess. I just- it's stupid, really. But I got scared."

"What, that I'd pick one of them. Kate, I love you. I'm in this, I promise."

Kate shook her head. "I know, and that's not it. I've never been as serious about someone as I am about you, and I freaked. I'm not used to having someone who's there for me all the time like you are, and it still catches me off guard. But I promise, I'm getting better about it. And next time, if there is one, I won't try to blame you."

Rick sighed and sat up. Even in the dim light, he could tell that Kate had tears in her eyes. He held his arms out for her and ran his hand up and down her spine when she curled into his chest.

"I don't want to mess this up, Rick." She said softly as a few tears escaped and landed on on his shirt. "But I don't know how to do this. I don't know how to care this much."

Rick kissed her head and pulled away from her. He stood up and pulled her to her feet so that he could give her a real hug. "I don't know how either, Kate. I've never loved someone as much as I love you. Besides my mother and Alexis of course. But this, what happened tonight, isn't the way to do it."

Kate nodded against him. "I know."

"Then we'll fix it together."

Kate nodded again. "Come on." She said as she pulled back. "Let's go to bed."

Rick nodded and led her to the bedroom. "Good, because I was going to come join you soon anyways. That's not a comfortable couch to sleep on."

Kate laughed and kissed him softly. "Thank you, Rick."

"For what?" He asked, confused by her statement.

"For staying. For refusing to walk out on us because I was being difficult."

Rick smiled and kissed her back. "Always."

* * *

**It's kinda short, but I hope you guys like it. I was kind of struggling with this one, but I decided to just put it out there and hope for the best.**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	18. 15- Yin & Yang

**#15 Because Yin needs Yang**

"Mumma, hurry." Clara said as she scurried off after AJ.

"Girls, please stop running." Kate called after her daughters.

AJ stopped and turned around to face her parents. Clara reached her sister's side and slipped her hand inside AJ's.

"We wanna see the pandas." AJ explained.

Kate smiled as she and Rick reached them. "We know. But they'll still be there in 2 minutes."

The girls sighed and nodded as they continued walking, but at a much slower pace.

"They are so your children." Kate murmured to Rick.

"They're just excited. They've been stuck inside all week."

They finally reached the pandas, and were unsurprised to find AJ and Clara at the front of a group of people watching the animals. Kate went to stand behind them, and she pulled Clara into her arms before resting a hand on AJ's shoulder.

"Hey, Kate." Rick called from his position by the sign. "Come here."

Kate set Clara down and made sure AJ was paying enough attention to her before she walked over to Rick, making sure she could still clearly see both girls.

"Check out their names." Rick said.

"Yin and Yang." Kate said with a smile.

Rick leaned down and pressed a kiss to her temple before leading her back to their kids. He scooped Clara up off the ground and settled her on his shoulders as Kate pulled AJ into her side.

"They're cute." AJ said. "Look, that one keeps sharing the food with the other one."

Kate turned and looked up at Rick, a smile on her face. He extended his hand and linked their fingers together and squeezed her hand. "I told you Yin needs Yang."

"What?" AJ asked, looking up at her parents.

"Don't worry about it, Bug." Kate replied with a smile.

"I want one, Mumma!" Clara exclaimed.

Kate and Rick laughed. "I'm not buying you a bear, Clara."

"Not even a stuffed one?" She asked as she turned to look at her mother with her puppy dog eyes.

"Those don't work on me, remember? But if you both behave and don't go running off, we'll get you stuffed animals, ok?"

Both girls' eyes lit up and they nodded.

"Come on." Rick finally said. "Let's go look at the monkeys."

"I'm right here, Daddy!" Clara said happily.

"Then I guess we'll go find some monkeys for you to live with." AJ teased.

"Only if we have you live with bugs!" Clara shot back.

Kate rolled her eyes as her daughters began trading insults back and forth, their smiles growing with each one. She still didn't know how her family had become this crazy.

* * *

**I know the ending is kind of funny, but I couldn't figure out how to end it. Thanks to Sheffield93 for the idea, hope you liked it!**

**I started a new story that's full of outtakes from this one, and I'd love if you could go check it out! It's called Snapshots, and I hope you guys take the time to read it.**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

** Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	19. 98- Want

**Aaannnnd, we're back to some smut. Also, I'm working on writing THAT scene from the premiere, so hopefully it'll be up in a day or two.**

* * *

**#98 Because she just wants him.**

"Kate, I'm ho-"

Rick's words were instantly cut off when Kate's lips crashed into his. She slid her tongue along the seam of his lips, and he parted them for her. While their tongues dueled, Rick dropped his bag and threaded his fingers through Kate's hair as he held her face to his. His other hand traced down her side until it reached her hip, where he gripped tightly and slipped his fingers under her shirt.

When Kate broke away and started trailing kisses down his jaw, Rick took the opportunity to speak.

"Were you planning this?"

"Uh-huh." Kate said as she sucked in his pulse point.

"Can we maybe shut the door?" Rick asked, noticing that the front door was still open.

Kate pulled him a few steps forward as she scraped her teeth down his jaw. A second later, she was using his body weight to slam the door shut as she pressed him into it.

"Better?" She asked as she nipped at his earlobe.

Rick made a noise that he hoped sounded like agreement as he pulled her face back to his and kissed her again. Kate's fingers gripped his hair, and before he knew what was happening, she'd jumped up and wrapped her legs around him. Rick managed to catch her, and he spun them around until she was pressed firmly into the door.

"You're not allowed to leave ever again." Kate gasped as Rick licked down her throat and nibbled on the skin where her neck met her collarbone.

"Did you miss me?" Rick asked, unable to completely keep the smile from his voice.

"I just wanted to see you in person. 3 weeks is entirely too long for you to be gone." Kate replied.

Rick grinned into her neck. "Never again, then." He murmured as he turned and carried her into the kitchen and deposited her on the counter. He pulled back slightly, and got his first good look at what Kate was wearing. Or not wearing, depending on the viewpoint.

She had on a deep purple dress shirt that Rick recognized as one that had gone missing from his side of the closet a few months ago, and nothing else.

"Like what you see?" Kate asked as she coyly lifted a hand and began toying with the top button.

Rick nodded and slipped his fingers in the gap between two of the middle buttons, but Kate's fingers on his hands stopped him.

"Don't you dare rip this shirt." She practically hissed.

"It's mine." Rick pointed out with a smirk.

"It was. Now it's mine. And if you rip it, I won't be happy."

Rick looked at her for a moment, trying to figure out if she was serious about making him take the effort- not to mention the time- to undo the buttons.

"Besides," Kate said, her voice husky again. "There are so many more inventive ways to get it off."

Rick grinned and leaned in to press a kiss to the dip at the base of Kate's throat he trailed his lips as far down as he could until the fabric of the shirt got in the way. Instead of pulling back and using his fingers to undo the buttons, Rick pulled it into his mouth, and a second later, he was licking the skin exposed.

He made his way through the rest of the buttons in the same manner, and each button that he undid earned a gasp and moan of approval from Kate. When the buttons were undone, Rick slid his fingers under the fabric where it rested on her shoulders and slid it down her arms until it pooled on the counter behind her.

Rick leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to the scar between her breasts before turning his head to the side and scraping his teeth lightly over the rounded flesh.

"Rick." Kate gasped as her fingers gripped his hair.

Rick smirked against her skin and pulled her nipple into his mouth. His teeth caught it and he tugged lightly, flicking his tongue over the puckered flesh. He allowed it to slip from his mouth with an obscene 'pop', and his tongue darted out to lick around the nipple once more.

He was in the process of kissing his way down to Kate's center when she began tugging his up her body.

"Later." She panted before pulling him in for a kiss. "I need you right now."

Rick nodded and pressed a considerably chaste kiss to her lips before he pulled back and began to work on his belt. Kate's fingers made their way to his shirt and stripped him of it, just before he kicked his pants off. She hooked a leg around his waist and used it to tug him toward her. Rick shifted her position slightly, and entered her with one smooth thrust.

They groaned in response to the feeling that they'd been denied for three weeks, and Rick had to pause in an effort to not make this embarrassingly short. When he felt Kate squeeze her inner muscles around him, he pulled out slightly and slowly thrusted back in. He continued this pattern until Kate was writhing on the counter in front of him, begging for him to go faster.

He gripped her hips and pulled almost all the way out, before he slammed back in, earning a very enthusiastic curse from Kate. He reached one hand up and squeezed her breast, enjoying the feel of it resting in his hand. He took the nipple between his thumb and forefinger and rolled it while tugging it gently.

Kate was assaulted by the sensations coursing through her, and her orgasm washed over her without warning. She gasped and arched her back while her walls clamped tightly around Rick, and he continued to tweak her nipples as she came down from her high.

When she'd managed to catch her breath, Rick began thrusting again. Kate gripped his shoulder with one hand the the edge of the counter with the other, and she knew there would be nail marks on his back later, but all she could focus on was the sensation building in her again.

"So close, Rick." She gasped out, tightening her legs around his waist as she spoke.

"Me too, Kate." Rick murmured into her neck as he sped up. He brought his hand down from her breast and rubbed quick circles on Kate's clit. She gasped and bucked her hips twice before she was flying over the edge and taking Rick with her.

When they'd managed to catch their breath, Rick slid from her and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips in response to her whimper of protest. He helped her slide off the counter, and caught her when her legs began to buckle. He pulled her into his arms and allowed her to burrow into his chest.

"I missed you." She said quietly after a moment.

"I got that."

"I'm serious, Rick. No more long book tours. I don't like it."

"I don't either. I'll see what I can do."

"Good. Now, take me to bed."

* * *

**Hope you guys liked it. Like I said, my take of THAT scene will be up within the next few days.**

**Also, thank you to Minerva89 for your help with the email situation. Everything is back to how it should be!**

**If you have any ideas for any of the numbers, please let me know. I have a few planned out already, but there are a few that I could use help with. So if you have an idea, let me know, and if it's one I don't have a plan for, I'll do my best to write yours.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	20. 50- Apologize

**I NEED PEOPLE TO FANGIRL WITH! I haven't seen the newest episode yet, but I have a break between two of my classes that should be long enough to watch it. Or I might just wake up early and watch it. BUT- I saw the Paley fest, and holy crap! They basically said that Rick and Kate are practicing making babies! Do they know what that does to me? So I was watching that and flailing around like a freak, and my roommate actually had to leave because I was distracting her from her homework. But I apologized so we're ok.**

**Also, to anyone who cares, my birthday is on Thursday! Which is good, because I'm kind of sick of being 18. And I want cake. **

**Sorry for the mess of information. Back to the story now.**

* * *

**#50 Because he knows when to apologize.**

Kate was in her bedroom putting her pajamas on when she heard the knock on the door. She pulled her shirt over her head and pulled her hair out from under the collar before turning and walking to the door. She paused for a moment as she started to think about who it would be, and whether or not she even wanted to see him.

In the end, she sighed and opened the door.

"Hi." He said. At least he had the decency to look sheepish.

"Hi." Kate said, still unsure of whether or not she wanted to let him in.

Rick looked at the ground for a moment. "I'm sorry." He finally murmured.

Kate nodded, but she didn't say anything. She was curious, but she didn't want to give anything away.

Rick noticed this, and he sighed. He ran his hand through his hair once before he shifted on his feet and brought his eyes back up to hers. "I fucked up. There's no other way to say it. I fucked up, and I'm sorry."

Kate nodded again, and tried not to let the smile break over her face at his word choice.

Rick sighed again when he realized she wasn't letting him in until he elaborated. "I don't know why I did that. Or well, I do, but that's not the point." He corrected himself when he saw Kate raise an eyebrow at him. "I know you're with Josh, and I shouldn't have acted like that, but the way he was coming on to you bothered me."

Kate sighed. She knew he had meant well. And truthfully, she was more upset because he wasn't really her boyfriend than she was because of what he'd done. She quietly stepped to the side and gestured for him to enter.

Rick smiled gratefully as he stepped through the door. He looked around as she led him to the couch and smiled when she handed him a glass of water as she returned from the kitchen. He took a sip before setting it on her coffee table and turning to face her where she sat at the other end of the couch.

"I respect your relationship with Josh. I never meant to give you the impression that I didn't. But that guy tonight just pissed me off. The things he was saying about you, _to_ you... it bothered me. And I know you're used to it, you have to be for you to be good at your job. But I'm still not used to it, and it still bothers me. Because I may not know you as well as some people, but I know that there's more to you than he was implying. I'm not apologizing for punching him, mind you, because I actually managed to knock him out. But I am apologizing that I pretended to be your boyfriend. And I'm apologizing for the attention that I drew to you. I know that as a cop you do your best to stay out of the spotlight, and I know I make that harder for you sometimes, and I'm sorry for that too. I don't know what the fallout of this is going to be, but I called Paula, and she promised to keep any mention of you out of the papers, so you don't have to worry about that, at least not too much. I also wanted to apologize if this causes some sort of issue between you and Josh. I don't know him well enough to know if I like him or not, but I know that you seem happy, and I want you to be happy, so I'm respecting your relationship. I'm just really sorry for how I handled everything tonight."

Kate's apartment fell into silence as he finished speaking, and it took her a moment to process everything that he'd just said. Finally, she spoke. "Thank you. I know I was yelling at you earlier, but I was grateful that you felt responsible for me. As unnecessary as it is, mind you." She added with a small smile. "As for Josh..." Kate broke off with a sigh. "We broke up. He was a great guy, but we never really talked. He's going to Haiti to build hospitals and help people, and that's great for him, and for the people that he's helping, but it wasn't going to be so great for me. So thank you for respecting our relationship, but there isn't one to respect anymore."

Rick nodded as he absorbed everything she'd said. "So... we're good?" He finally asked.

Kate nodded and smiled. "We're good."

Rick smiled at her as he stood from the couch. "Then I guess I'll let you get to sleep. I'll see you tomorrow."

Kate nodded as she followed him to the door, trying to ignore the sadness she felt at the fact that he was leaving. When they reached the door, she impulsively reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder, and when he turned to look at her, she pressed a quick yet gentle kiss to his cheek.

"Thank you." She murmured.

Rick smiled at her as he stepped into the hallway. "Always."

Kate watched as he walked toward the elevator. "Rick." She called out. When he turned to face her, she smiled. "It was a nice punch."

Rick smiled as he stepped into the elevator, and Kate sighed wistfully as she watched the doors close. She wanted to be with him, had for a while. But she wasn't going to do it like this. She wouldn't give anyone any chance to say that he was a rebound, when in truth every other guy had been a rebound from him. So she'd wait, not for long. But long enough.

* * *

**I hope you guys liked this. I was originally going to do this as #10, but then he started apologizing, and I was like, 'Ok, then. Guess we're doing that reason now.'**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	21. 22- Drawer

**Look, a smut-free chapter!**

* * *

**#22 Because it's the drawer... it's his drawer**

Rick unlocked the door to Kate's apartment and stepped inside, closing and locking the door behind him. It was late, but he knew Kate wouldn't be back for a while. He'd been at a meeting with Black Pawn nearly all day-not to mention the day before, and they had decided that he would just have to sit this case out, since he'd missed nearly everything.

He dropped his wallet and keys onto the table by the door and made his way into her bedroom, stripping off his pants and shirt as he went. He dropped them into the hamper when he got to her room before he turned and walked to the dresser. He pulled open his drawer and grabbed a new pair of boxers before going into the bathroom to get ready for bed. When he was done, Rick walked over to the bed and climbed into what had become his side.

He grabbed his phone and sent a text to Kate to let her know that he was sleeping over at her place, just in case she had a freak out when she walked in. Then he set his alarm for a time when he hoped Kate would still be there in the morning. He knew she was busy, and that he wouldn't likely see her without the alarm, but the possibility of sleeping in the same bed as her, even if he completely missed her in the morning, was enough to make him leave the loft for the night. Besides, Alexis was still at college, and Martha had gone to the Hamptons, so he would have been alone either way. But now, he'd be able to sleep somewhere that had more Kate than him.

When he was done with his phone, he plugged it in and turned off the light before rolling over to face Kate's side of the bed. After a moment's hesitation, Rick reached out and grabbed her pillow. He wrapped his arms around it and buried his nose in the fabric, inhaling the scent of her shampoo. It wasn't the real thing, but it was enough to send him off to sleep.

* * *

When Kate walked into her apartment, she froze. Something was off, but she couldn't figure out what it was. She pulled her gun out and walked silently to her bedroom, where she found a lump in her bed. As she approached, her hip bumped into something, and after a brief flash of pain, Kate smiled.

Rick had never closed his drawer.

Kate softly slid it shut and turned to the box on top of the dresser, where she deposited her father's watch and her mother's ring. Then she turned to the lock box and placed her gun inside, and closed and locked the lid. She turned to her own drawers and pulled out a tank top and a pair of boy shorts before walking into the bathroom to change.

When she pulled her phone out of her pocket, Kate saw that she had a text from Rick, letting her know that he was sleeping at her place that night. She chuckled to herself for being worried, and she switched the volume back on, unsure of how it got put on silent in the first place.

She quickly changed into her pajamas and brushed her teeth and hair, and washed the makeup off her face. When she was done, she opened the door just enough for her to slip out, without letting too much light into the room. She was about to flick the light off, when she caught sight of how Rick was sleeping in her bed.

He was facing her side of the bed, and therefore the bathroom as well, and his body was curled around her pillow. Kate shook her head and smiled to herself before turning the light off and carefully making her way to the bed, where she shifted the covers and climbed in. It took a bit of effort, but she was finally able to pry the pillow from Rick's grip, and she replaced it with her own body, smiling when Rick unconsciously pulled her closer.

"Kate?" He murmured sleepily while he pressed his lips to her head.

"Shh." Kate said as she kissed his neck.

Rick made a sound of agreement and pulled Kate more firmly into his body. Kate snuggled more fully into him, and a moment later, she was asleep.

* * *

**Hope you guys are ok with the lack of smut, but it's a little difficult to write smut for every chapter.**

**If you have any ideas for this story, please let me know. I already have some of them planned, but there are others that I'm not sure about, and I love audience participation. So send me your thoughts, and if I don't have anything planned, I'll do my best to write what you want.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	22. 23- Birthday

**Sorry for the delay! TORONTOSUN, I know we couldn't remember the idea for #23, so I made a new idea. But it's the same number.**

* * *

**#23 Because she organized the best birthday gift ever.**

Rick was awoken when something landed on his stomach. He let out a puff of air and opened his eyes to find his daughter smiling down at him.

"Happy birthday, Daddy!"

Rick smiled as he pulled his daughter into his arms. "Thank you, AJ. But why are you jumping on me?"

AJ laughed as she squirmed to get out of his hold. She jumped off the bed and turned to face him, her blue eyes bright with excitement. "Momma says breakfast is ready. She made you french toast an' stuff. But she says you gotsa go out there to eat it."

Rick groaned as he sat up. "Alright, Bug. Let's go." He stood up and grabbed AJ's arm, twisting her slightly so that she could cling to his back as he carried her through his office and into the main living area.

Kate was standing at the stove, plating the last of the french toast when they came in. She turned around when she heard AJ laughing, and smiled at her family.

"I woked him up, Momma. Does that mean we can eat now?"

Kate laughed. "Yes, it does."

Rick put his daughter on the ground and smiled as she hurried to the table and climbed into her seat. Rick made his way over to Kate and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind.

"That's not exactly how I planned to wake up this morning." He murmured quietly to her.

Kate laughed again. "I waited for nearly an hour for you to wake up. But AJ beat you to it, and unless you wanted her to walk in on that..."

"Ew ew ew ewww." Rick cried as he dropped his arms and took a step away as unwanted images filled his mind. "I thought we agreed that she never gets mentioned in the same thought as _that_."

"Who doesn't get mentioned in the same thought as what?" AJ asked from the table. "And I thought we were eating."

"We are, Bug. Daddy's just being weird." Kate said as she grabbed the platter of french toast, eggs, and bacon and brought it over to the table while Rick filled two mugs with coffee and brought them over.

Breakfast was quite the production, as it always was in the Castle family. AJ refused to let her parents cut her food up for her anymore, so she ended up with syrup all over her face and in her hair, and Kate and Rick just watched, partly amused, and partly dreading the bath time that was sure to follow.

When everyone had eaten, Kate took AJ up to the bathroom to try and clean her hair while Rick took care of the breakfast dishes. By the time he was done washing and drying the dishes, AJ came scampering down the stairs in a gray dress with sparkly black leggings.

"Hey, Bug." Rick said as he grabbed her around her waist and hauled her up so he could blow a raspberry into her stomach. AJ broke out into a fit of giggles and thrashed around in an attempt to get away.

"Unc-Uncle!" She finally cried.

Rick stopped and set her on the counter. "Did Momma get all the syrup out of your hair?" He asked once they'd both calmed down.

AJ nodded. "I didn't like it though. It hurt lots."

Rick smiled sympathetically at his little girl. "I know, Bug. But if you remembered to tie your hair back, or to ask me or Momma to do it, you wouldn't get food stuck in your hair in the first place."

"I know." AJ sighed.

Rick smiled as he reached out suddenly and grabbed her around the waist before flipping her upside down and holding her by her ankles.

"What the hell?" Kate asked as she stepped off the stairs and stared at her husband and daughter.

"She started it." Rick said by way of explanation.

Kate smiled. "I doubt that. You're going to make her sick."

Rick shrugged but he lowered AJ until she could rest her hands on the floor, and Rick let her legs drop so that she landed upright.

AJ pouted. "But, Momma, I's havin' fun!"

"I know." Kate said. "I'm just a giant fun-sucker, aren't I?"

AJ nodded and scurried into the living room. "Daddy, come open your presents!"

"Bug, we've got to wait for Alexis and Gram, and everyone else."

"We'll see them tonight, Rick. Just go open them." Kate murmured as she rubbed his back.

Rick looked at her for a moment before he nodded and went to sit on the couch. AJ brought over a stack of presents and handed them over. "Here ya go."

Rick took them and began opening them, smiling at each revelation.

Alexis had given him yet another laser tag set, which promised to be even more high tech, and which earned an eye roll from Kate. Martha had given him a signed copy of the play she'd been writing, which she assured him would be the biggest thing this decade, but which Rick seriously doubted. AJ gave him a clay bowl that had her handprint on the bottom, and which said 'I heart my Daddy' around the side.

"Thank you, Bug." Rick said as his eyes got misty with tears.

"Don't you like it, Daddy?" AJ asked concernedly. "I made it for you at school."

Rick shook his head. "I love it, Bug. I love it so much. Come 'ere."

When AJ reached his side, he grabbed her in a tight hug and kissed her temple. When he released her, AJ looked around in confusion. "Momma, what did you get Daddy?"

Kate smiled from her seat on the opposite end of the couch as she pulled a long box out from behind her back. She held it out to Rick with some nervousness, even though she knew it was ridiculous.

Rick took it and opened it eagerly, but his movement stopped when he saw what was inside. "Really?" He asked, looking up.

Kate smiled and nodded. "Yeah. That's not the exact one, but they get hard to read after a week."

"A week? You've known that long?"

Kate nodded again.

"I don't get it." AJ announced, looking between her parents. "What did she get you, Daddy?" She peered into the box and looked up at him. "She got you a stick?"

Rick and Kate laughed. "In a way, yes." Rick said. "But it's what the stick means that is my present."

"Oh." AJ said with a nod. "What's it mean?" She asked after a moment.

"It means you're going to be a big sister, Bug." Kate said with a gentle smile.

"You mean there's a baby in there?" She asked, pointing to the stick.

Kate laughed again. "No. The baby's in here." She said, pointing to her stomach.

"I knew that." AJ said. "But it doesn't look like there's a baby in there."

"It's still really small. It'll get bigger before it's born."

"And it'll be mine?" AJ asked.

"It'll be all of ours."

AJ thought over the information for a while. "Fine. But we're only keeping it if it's a girl. Boys have cooties."

Kate laughed again, and Rick let out an indignant sound. "Excuse me!" He said.

AJ looked at him. "Sorry, Daddy. But it's true." With that, AJ took off up the stairs to her room to play before lunch was ready.

"So, did I do ok with your present?" Kate asked softly as she came to sit on Rick's lap.

"Beyond ok, Kate." Rick said as he rested his hand on her abdomen and kissed her cheek.

"Better than the fake murder?" She asked, remembering back to what he'd said was the best birthday gift ever.

Rick smiled. "That _was_ epic. But this, that we made another baby together, is so much better." He whispered fervently. "But seriously, if you keep up these great birthday gifts, I'll never be able to repay you."

"I guess you'll just have to try to repay me tonight after AJ's asleep." Kate said huskily as she kissed his lips softly and stood up.

Rick groaned as he watched her walk away. He knew the rest of the day would pass by excruciatingly slowly.

* * *

**There you go, hope you liked it!**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	23. 95- His

**#95 Because she checked his ass.**

* * *

As the water continued to pour down over Rick's body, he heard the distinct sound of the bathroom door opening, and a moment later, he heard it close again as Kate entered.

"Morning." She called out as she made her way to the sink and began brushing her teeth.

"Good morning." Rick replied as he gave her a quick smile before turning and grabbing his shampoo from the shelf. He squirted a decent sized dollop into his hand and began working it into his hair as he continued humming the song he'd started before Kate interrupted him.

"I know I probably should have woken you up, but you looked so calm and peaceful. And I knew we had time before we had to be at the precinct today." Rick said as he held his head under the water and let the soap wash out.  
When he didn't hear a reply, he pulled his head away from the stream of water and turned to look at Kate.

"Hey!" He exclaimed, startling her out of her daze.

"What, Castle?" She asked after she spit her toothpaste into the sink.

"You were totally checking out my ass!" He cried, loving that he caught her.

Kate scoffed. "I was not." She said evenly as she spared him a glare.

Rick chuckled softly. "There's no point denying it, Kate. You were totally checking out my ass. But it's ok. I know I'm hard to resist."

Kate scoffed again. "You are not hard to resist." She said, despite the warm feeling pooling low in her abdomen.

"Oh, really? Come join me and prove it." Rick said as his voice dropped to a pitch that completely wrecked Kate's resolve. Not that she was going to let him know.

She put her toothbrush down and began slowly unbuttoning the shirt she'd stolen from Rick when she woke up naked and alone. When all the buttons were undone, she allowed the shirt to drop from her shoulders and pool on the floor, revealing that she hadn't taken the time to put any underwear on that morning.  
Rick watched intently as she made her way to the shower, d he knew that even if she wasn't trying to look sexy, it would still be one of the sexiest scenes he'd ever witnessed, simply because it was her.

When she reached the door to the shower, she pulled it open, and the gush of cool air would have normally been enough to clear Rick's mind, but the influx of air carried her scent on it, and Rick was assaulted by the scent of cherries and vanilla, and something that was simply Kate.

Rick watched as she stepped into the shower and crowded his space, smiling up at him.

"See, told you I was hard to resist." Rick said with what air was left in his lungs.

Kate chuckled throatily at him. "Whatever you say... Ricky."

Rick was at a loss for words, which was just as well, because no sooner had the words left his mouth, than Kate's lips were attached to his own, smothering the growl he let out.

Rick wove the fingers of one hand into Kate's hair while his other arm wrapped low around her waist and pulled her in to his body.

"I'm just in here because I need a shower." Kate said breathily once they'd broken their kiss.

"Well, if that's the case.." Rick said as he released his hold on her and stepped back. "Don't let me distract you."

Rick made to step out of the shower, since he was done, but Kate's fingers curled around his wrist and tugged him back.

"Don't even think about leaving this shower." She growled as she kissed him again.

Rick grinned into the kiss, and Kate knew she'd just proved his point, but she didn't care. Not when he was walking her backward and pressing her up against the shower wall. Not when he was kissing her like _that_.

By the time they got out of the shower, they were running late, but they were sated for the time being.

"Fine, Castle." Kate said as she was finishing up her makeup and he walked into the bathroom and handed her a cup of coffee. "Maybe you are hard to resist."  
Rick smiled and kissed her temple. "Who said I wanted you to resist me?" He asked.

Kate put the cap back on her mascara and turned in the circle of his arms. "Good. Because it's hard enough to keep my hands off of you at the precinct." She said before she pulled him into a kiss.

"Then by all means," Rick said as broke the kiss. "Don't keep your hands off me at the precinct. You know I won't mind."

"Maybe not But I will. And we both certainly will when Gates kicks you out."  
Rick sighed and pulled away with a disgusted look on his face. "Can we not mention her when we've got the potential of having sex?" He whined.

Kate laughed. "We don't have that potential right now, Castle. We have to be at the precinct soon."

Rick huffed but stepped away from her when she pushed on his chest.

"Come on, Writer-boy. We'll have plenty of potential when we get off work, ok?"

Rick instantly brightened and followed her from the bathroom and through his bedroom and office into the main area of the loft. Kate laughed and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips before she led the way out of the loft, her promises for their evening still ringing in Rick's ears.

* * *

**Well, hope you guys liked this one. I was actually smiling for the majority of the time I spent writing this. I hope you guys were smiling as you read it.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	24. 96- Hers

**Here's the continuation of the last chapter. I'm glad you guys all liked it.**

* * *

**#96... and he checked hers.**

Kate groaned when she heard her phone ringing. She reached over and felt around until she was able to grab it and bring it to her ear. She listened as Ryan gave her the details, but eventually, she told him to just text her the information, and she hung up. A moment later, her phone chimed, and Kate groaned again when she saw the address Ryan had sent her. If she wanted any chance of getting to the scene before Lanie took the body back to the morgue, she needed to get moving. But it was the middle of winter, and Kate wasn't looking forward to leaving the warmth of the bed. Or the man lying next to her.

"Wha time 'sit?" Rick asked sleepily.

"Early." Kate replied as she rolled over and curled herself into his side.

"Body?" Rick mumbled as he pulled her closer.

Kate nodded. "You comin'?"

"No. Got chapters due."

Kate nodded again. "'Kay. Gotta get up."

"Then get up." Rick said, playfully poking her in the side and earning a shriek from Kate in response.

"Too cold." She whined. But she sat up regardless.

When she sat upright, the sheet fell around her waist, and the cold air made her nipples tighten through the t-shirt she'd stolen from Rick the night before.

Kate looked over at him one last time before getting out of bed and she shook her head when she saw that he was staring at her chest. When he started to lean in to her, Kate shoved him away with a smile. "No time for that. Gotta go to work."

Rick sighed. "Fine. Go get in the shower and I'll get you coffee."

* * *

When Kate emerged from the bathroom in nothing more than her towel, Rick was waiting for her with a cup of coffee, and when Kate saw the heart on top, she smiled up at him.

"Thank you." She murmured as she leaned in for a sweet kiss. When they broke apart, Kate gave him one last peck on his lips before she tore herself away from him. She took a sip of the coffee as she made her way to their closet while Rick sat back down on his side of the bed and pulled his computer onto his lap.

"Are you taking the girls to school today?" Kate called from the closet where she was figuring out what to wear.

"Yeah. I figured that since I was staying home anyway, it made more sense for me to drive them than Alexis."

Kate nodded as she came out of their closet with an arm full of clothes. Rick was busy flicking through pages on his computer and sipping his coffee, but he still managed to have conversations with her.

"Do you want me to swing by the precinct and bring you and the boys lunch?"

Kate shrugged. "Doesn't matter to me." She said easily.

Rick rolled his eyes. "So that's a yes then. Someone's got to feed you."

Kate smiled in affection as she dropped her towel and pulled her underwear on. For all that Rick's attention had been focused on his computer a moment before, his eyes went straight to Kate's chest. When she noticed this, Kate gave an eye roll of her own and, just to mess with him, she turned her back to him as she pulled her bra on.

When she glanced over her shoulder, Kate smirked when she saw that Rick's eyes were firmly glued on her ass. Because she was feeling playful now, despite the fact that it was still dark outside, Kate reached over and grabbed her shirt and began putting it on, giving her butt an extra few wiggles for Rick's benefit.

When Kate tugged her pants up, she heard Rick let out a gasp, and she knew she'd picked out the right jeans to wear that day.

When she was fully clothed, Kate picked up her discarded towel, bending obscenely to give Rick a different view of her ass. She swayed her hips for exaggeration as she made her way back into the bathroom to work on her hair and makeup.

As she was leaning over the vanity for one final check of her makeup, Kate gasped when she suddenly felt Rick right behind her, crowding into her.

"Do you have _any_ idea what you do to me?" He asked in a husky voice.

Kate laughed and wiggled her hips against his groin, grinning when she felt how aroused he was. "I think I have some idea."

Rick growled as he grabbed her waist and turned her to face him. Kate rested her hands on his forearms while his hands slid over her waist and cupped her ass, squeezing slightly. Kate gasped at the sensation and leaned into him.

"That's what you get for staring at my ass when I'm getting dressed." She replied coyly.

"That's not gonna get me to stop." Rick pointed out.

"True." Kate acknowledged. "But this might."

With that, Kate spun out of his arms and out of his reach.

"Kate." Rick whined even as he stepped closer.

"We don't have time, Castle." Kate said firmly. "Tonight."

Rick smiled and stepped toward her again, and this time, Kate let him pull her into his arms. "Promise?" He asked as his lips skimmed her neck.

"Mmm. Yes. But." Kate said as she kissed him firmly and then stepped away. "I have a body to go see."

Rick followed her out of their bedroom and to the front door of the loft. "You know, some men might be offended that their wife is leaving them to go hang out with a dead body. But not me."

Kate smiled and gave him one last kiss. "Good to know. Have fun today. Write lots of chapters. But keep our sex out of it."

Rick laughed and gave her a slap on the ass as she left. "I make no promises!" He called down the hall, not caring if he woke anyone up.

Kate turned and gave him a stern look, but her smile ruined the effect.

"I love you!" She called.

Rick smiled. "I love you too!"

Kate blew him one last kiss just as the elevator doors closed.

* * *

**Well, there you have it. I was nearly done with this, when my computer jumped to a random webpage, and I lost everything I'd already done. So I moved over to my iPad to write this, in the hopes that the same thing doesn't happen. Sometimes I seriously think that the universe doesn't want me to write this story. But you guys like it, don't you? **

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :) **


	25. 77- Smile

**Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who's reviewed this, both before and after I had to repost it. It really means a lot, guys. So thank you. And thank you to everyone who's followed and favorited this, I love you guys too!**

**Random comment. Have any of you guys tried making one of those frozen pizzas in he microwave? And everything is bubbling and melted, but the dang cheese in the middle just won't melt, so you stand in front of the microwave and encourage it to melt? It's just me? Oh, ok. Awkward...**

* * *

Kate's eyes popped open, and she let out a sigh. A quick glance to her clock told her that it was just after 2 in the morning, and the sounds from the man next to her confirmed that her boyfriend was asleep. Just like she should have been. But she was hungry. Really hungry.

Kate turned her head and smiled as she watched Rick sleep. She wanted to wake him up, but he was just so adorable.

_But the baby's hungry._ Kate thought, and a smile spread slowly across her face. _Yeah, blame the baby. _

"Castle." Kate hissed. When he didn't respond, Kate poked him in the ribs and said his name louder. "Castle."

Rick grumbled and rolled over, pulling Kate into his arms. She rolled her eyes, but couldn't deny that it felt nice to be held. But she was still hungry.

"Castle, come on." Kate whined loudly.

When he blinked open his eyes, Kate sighed. "Finally." She mumbled.

"What's wrong?" Rick asked without letting go of Kate.

"You need to feed me." Kate said.

Rick sighed and pulled himself up to look at the clock on Kate's nightstand. "At 2 in the morning?" He asked.

"Your baby's hungry, Castle. Feed her. And me."

Rick sighed and sat up, relinquishing his hold on Kate and smiling softly at her whimper of protest. "Where am I going?"

"The kitchen. We want you to make me a pizza."

Rick smiled at how she talked about their baby. "What if we don't have everything?"

Kate raised an eyebrow at him. "When does the Castle house not have everything necessary to make a pizza?"

Rick smiled. "Fair point. Come on. If I'm in the kitchen, so are you."

Kate smiled happily and got out of bed as quickly as she could and followed him out to the kitchen. She briefly considered pulling a shirt on over her sports bra, but her bump was still fairly small, and she liked looking at it, and she knew Rick did too. She sat down on one of the stools and watched as Rick pulled on his "Kiss the Cook" apron and started mixing the dough.

"What's going on the pizza?" He asked, mentally preparing himself for whatever weird toppings she'd come up with.

"Pepperoni. Ham. Bacon." Kate paused and thought for a moment. "Pineapple. Red bell peppers. Garlic."

"That it?" Rick asked.

Kate nodded. "Oh, I want pickles."

Rick chuckled softly and pulled everything out of the fridge. Once the cheese was on the pizza, he grabbed the topping that was closest to him and was about to start putting it on the pizza when Kate stopped him.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

Rick looked at the container in his hand. "You wanted pickles..." He trailed off.

"Not on my pizza. That's just gross." Kate said and wrinkled her nose.

"O-kay." Rick said slowly as he went to put the pickles back in the fridge. He'd already learned not to question a pregnant woman.

"No!" Kate whined when she saw what he was doing. Rick turned to look at her and raised an eyebrow in confusion. Kate held out her hands and smiled. "Thank you!" She said and her smile grew when Rick placed the pickles in her grasp.

Rick just gave her an affectionate smile and finished up her pizza, before making another, plain cheese pizza. He slid both of them into the oven and went to stand behind Kate. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his hands on her stomach, stroking softly.

Kate turned to look at him and smiled again. She leaned in for a kiss, but Rick pulled away slightly. When she looked hurt, Rick leaned in and kissed her forehead. "I'm not kissing you after you've been eating pickles straight." Rick said decisively.

Kate pouted. "But I kiss you after you eat onions."

Rick rolled his eyes, but he leaned in and kissed her lips quickly and softly, grimacing when he pulled away and tasted pickles on her breath. He reached around and grabbed the jar from her, allowing her to take one more before he closed it and went to put it back in the fridge. When he was done, the time went off, so he went to pull the pizzas out, smiling when he heard Kate's sigh at the sound of cheese bubbling. Rick set the pizzas on top of the counter and cut them quickly before moving them onto plate. He set Kate's down in front of her, and the plain cheese on he left on the stove.

Kate looked down at the pizza in front of her and grimaced. She looked up at Rick and gave him her best puppy dog eyes. Without a word, Rick sighed and removed the plate with her pizza and replaced it with the cheese pizza. Instantly, Kate smiled again.

Rick rolled his eyes and began picking off the garlic and peppers from the other pizza. When he was done, he turned back to kate and found that half her pizza was already gone. "Seriously?" Rick asked surprised. Kate paused in picking up another slice and just looked at him, confused. "That thing had like, 12 slices!"

"So?" Kate asked, taking a bite of her 7th slice.

Rick just shook his head and went to sit by her. When she thought he wasn't looking, Kate reached over and pulled a piece of bacon off his pizza and popped it in her mouth, smiling again at the look he gave her.

"You can't just have bacon in front of a pregnant woman and expect her not to eat some."

"It wasn't in front of you!" Rick exclaimed, his smile ruining his attempt at being angry. "Your place is over there. Mine is here. Therefore it's in front of me."

Kate just looked at him, the _What's your point?_ was clear in her expression, and didn't need to be said.

Rick just looked at her for another moment, and smiled when her hand crept out and stole another piece of bacon without her eyes ever leaving his. She kept eye contact as she put it in her mouth and smiled at him as she began to chew.

Rick shook his head and leaned in, using one hand to cup the back of her head. He pulled her in for a kiss that left them both gasping for air when they pulled apart a minute later.

"God, I love you." Rick panted.

Kate smiled again, a dazed and in love sort of thing. "I love you too."

Rick smiled and finally lifted his first piece of pizza to his mouth. It really wasn't so bad, not compared to some of the things she'd demanded on a pizza since her cravings started. Rick shuddered as he remembered on in particular. Bananas and broccoli just don't belong on the same pizza.

Rick looked over a moment later and found Kate smiling at her stomach as she hand traced patterns over the skin. Rick reached out and covered one of her hands with his own.

Kate looked up at him with so much love in her eyes that it nearly broke Rick's heart, in the best possible way.

"Thank you. For the pizza. And for knowing to make an extra one."

Rick smiled at her and kissed her forehead. He pulled her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Just keep smiling at us like that, and I'll do anything for you."

"Anything?" Kate challenged.

"Anything." Rick replied, and the seriousness in his eyes and tone told Kate that there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for her and their baby. And any other kids they may have one day.

Kate nodded and leaned in to kiss his lips softly. "Then take us to bed." She murmured.

* * *

**There you go! Hope you guys liked it, because I had a really fun time writing it. **

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	26. 29- How Much

**#29 Because she wants him to know how much she l...**

Kate pushed the door open and stepped into the loft, using her body weight to close the door as she slumped against it. She gave herself a few moments to bask in the quietness of the loft. She assumed AJ and Clara were asleep, but she was too tired to bring her hand up to look at the watch on her wrist to check.

Finally, she managed to pull herself upright with a quiet grunt. She dropped her purse near the table and allowed her coat to become a puddle on the floor as she kicked her shoes off. She slipped her gun out of the holster and locked it in the safe in Rick's office before she went into the bedroom.

Rick was sitting propped against the headboard with his computer on his lap.

"Kate!" He said, surprised he didn't hear her. "How long have you been home?"

"Dunno." Kate said as she walked by him and into the bathroom. Rick listened as she started the bath, and when he heard the water shut off, followed by what he assumed was a sigh as she settled in, he saved his document and went to the bathroom.

He knocked softly and spoke. "Kate? Can I come in, honey?"

He heard what sounded like agreement and opened the door, smiling when he saw Kate sitting in the tub with her head back and eyes closed. He walked over to her and knelt down, brushing her hair out of her face. Kate made a sleepy sound as she pried her eyes open and looked at him.

"You want me to warm up some food for you?"

Kate sighed, but didn't answer, deciding it took too much effort, and Rick would force her to eat something anyway. Sure enough, he chuckled softly and kissed her forehead before standing and leaving her in the bathtub.

The next thing Kate was aware of was Rick's voice. "Come on, Kate. Dinner's ready. Time to get out."

As Kate slowly woke up, she noted that the water in the tub had cooled substantially. She forced herself to sit up and allowed Rick to bend down and pulled her from the tub before he wrapped the towel around her and hugged her tightly. When she was dry, he helped her into a pair of shorts and one of his t-shirts before wrapping his arm around her waist and walking with her out toward the kitchen.

Kate saw that a bowl of soup was set up in front of one of the bar stools and changed her trajectory toward it, suddenly realizing that it had been a while since she'd eaten anything. Rick watched as she began to eat, all while trying to force herself to stay awake. Finally, as she neared the bottom of the bowl, she couldn't fight it any longer, and just as she was about to fall asleep in her dinner, Rick was there and scooping her into his arms as he carried her to their bedroom.

He'd already pulled back the covers, so he had no trouble getting her into bed and pulling the covers up to her chin. He kissed her lips softly before going back out and taking care of her dishes and turning off all the lights. when he crawled into bed, he was unsurprised when Kate rolled toward him and snuggled into his chest as much as she could.

"Castle?" She murmured, her first real word since before she'd gone in for her bath.

"Sleep, Kate." He murmured, knowing she'd need as much sleep as possible for the next few days.

"Want you to know how much I l..." She started, but was cut off as she fell asleep.

Rick smiled and kissed her temple. "I love you too, Kate."

* * *

**There you go! Hope you all liked this chapter. Feel free to follow me on twitter AllyLobster.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	27. 33- Yes

**#33 Because she wanted to say yes.**

As kate slowly drifted awake, she was aware of someone staring at her. "Staring is creepy, Castle." She mumbled as she tried to turn onto her side, only to find that it was more than a little difficult. Not to mention uncomfortable. After a moment of confusion, Kate's brain fully awakened, and she figured it out. She hadn't forgotten that she was pregnant, per say. Just that her stomach was as big as it was. It took some getting used to.

"Hey. Let's not lay like that, ok?" Rick murmured as he pressed her shoulder so she was resting on her back.

Kate grumbled as she opened one eye and squinted at him. "'s your fault." She muttered as she pushed herself upright.

Rick smiled and kissed her head. "I know. You had no part in it, whatsoever."

Kate glared at him. "Your little swimmers managed to get themselves up there."

Rick laughed and shook his head. "You're right. And I'm very proud of them. And grateful."

Kate smiled as he leaned in and kissed her softly. "Mmm. I'm kinda grateful too." She murmured as she kissed him again. She pulled away with an unhappy sigh after a moment.

"What's wrong?" Rick asked, concerned.

Kate smiled. "Your kid is using my bladder as a trampoline. Let me up so I don't pee in bed."

Rick smiled as he stood and watched Kate waddle to the bathroom. Of course, if she ever found out that he called it waddling, he'd have very sore ears for a very long time.

After she used the toilet, Kate washed her hands and brushed her teeth, giving her body a critical once over as she did so. She still wasn't huge, at least, not a huge as she'd been expecting she would be. But she still fe like a whale. When she was done, Kate lifted the shirt she'd stolen from Rick the night before and looked down at her stomach. She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as she let her fingers dance over her bump.

Without warning, there were hands pulling the shirt up and off her, and when she looked in the mirror, her eyes were met with a gorgeous blue that she hoped their baby would have.

"You're beautiful." Rick murmured as his fingers drew patterns on her stomach. Kate sighed as she leaned into his body and let the sensations take over.

"Marry me." Rick murmured, and for a moment Kate wondered if she'd heard him correctly.

"What?" She asked as she turned to face him. "What did you say?"

Rick shrugged and smiled. It was that adorable smile, the one that reminded her of the little boy he could be, and the one that had infuriated her to no end at the beginning of their partnership. Of course, now she couldn't figure out how she'd ever hated anything about him. Sure, he still annoyed her from time to time, but she couldn't hate anything about him if she tried.

Rick kissed her forehead, bringing her out of her trance. When he pulled back to look into her eyes, he was smiling, and Kate was sure she saw tears in his eyes. "I said, 'marry me.'" Rick replied, his joy seeming to have no end. "And before you ask, yes, I'm completely serious."

Kate was shocked. When she'd first told him she was pregnant, she'd expected this response, but as months went by without it, she began to think that he was worried about making the same mistake he'd made with Meredith again.

"Wow." Kate replied, completely unprepared for this. "I uh- I don't have a shirt on." She said, suddenly realizing that she was naked from the top up.

Rick shrugged again. "I like you shirtless." He could tell that she was processing his words, and figured it was best to wait her out until she addressed it.

"Yeah. Wow." Kate said, and she would have been annoyed with her lack of eloquence, but she was too busy being surprised.

They were silent for a while, and Rick started to get antsy. "Kate." He said softly, hoping to get some kind of answer out of her.

"No." She said, and she looked a little surprised with herself at the answer, but then she said it again, stronger this time. "No."

Rick was hurt. He'd figured that she'd been waiting for him to propose ever since she told him she was pregnant. But having her turn him down made him nervous. "Kate?"

Kate sighed and leaned against the counter. "Not like this, Castle."

"Like what?"

Kate sighed and placed a hand on her stomach. "Not because of the baby."

"You don't want to get married?" Rick asked, feeling as though everything he knew about her was changing right before his eyes.

Kate shook her head fervently. "I do. I want to marry you, but I don't want it to be because I got pregnant."

Rick sighed and relaxed a little. "So...?"

Kate sighed and tried to find words. "So... maybe I should have said 'not yet' instead of no. I want to marry you, and I will. But, not right now. Not because you think you have to because we're having a baby."

Rick nodded. "So, not no."

Kate smiled. "Not no. Eventually."

Rick relaxed even more and he nodded. "Ok." He took a deep breath and smiled at Kate. "Ok. Yeah, I can do eventually."

Kate smiled and kissed him lightly. "Good. And just so you know?"

"Hmm?" Rick asked as he took advantage of the fact that she had nothing covering her breasts.

Kate pulled his head up so she could look into his eyes and she smiled. "Next time you ask, assuming your timing is better of course," Kate paused to kiss away the pout on Rick's lips. "I'll say yes."

Rick smiled and pulled her into a kiss. "Good."

* * *

3 years later, as they were watching AJ fall asleep, Rick wrapped his arms around Kate's waist and rested his hands over the slight bump forming. Kate's hands came up to cover his and she locked their fingers together.

"Marry me." Rick whispered into her ear as AJ snuffled and rolled over.

Kate smiled and leaned into his body. "Yes." She whispered.

She turned her head to look up at him and smiled and kissed his cheek.

"You mean it?" Rick asked.

Kate laughed softly. "I told you I'd say yes next time."

Rick smiled as he turned his head to kiss her lips softly yet passionately. "Thank you."

Kate smiled up at him. "Always."

* * *

**Look, they're engaged! Hope you guys liked it. **

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	28. 3- Sugar Rush

**#3 Because he's a nine-year-old on a sugar rush.**

Kate smiled as she sat on the park bench and closed her eyes. Snowflakes continued to fall and the feel of them landing softly on her skin brought her a sense of peace she'd only felt a handful of other times. She could hear children laughing and playing in the snow, a sound she'd once thought she'd never hear.

Kate continued thinking over the events in her life that had brought her to this moment, until a cold sensation on her abdomen made her eyes pop open. She looked around in search of an explanation until her eyes landed on her husband.

"Castle! What the hell?" Kate exclaimed as she flinched away from his hand, forcing it out from under her shirt and coat.

"My hand was cold." Rick whined, a glint in his eyes.

Kate rolled her eyes. "You should have put gloves on."

"But it was snowing!" Rick exclaimed, defending himself.

"You know, Castle, sometimes you act like a nine-year-old."

"I take offense to that!"

Kate laughed and scanned the people around them. She finally found who she was looking for and pointed them out to Rick.

"Your 10 year old and 6 year old act more mature than you sometimes. Like now."

Rick laughed and wrapped an arm around Kate as the relaxed into the bench and watched their girls build a snowman. Kate pulled her phone out and began taking pictures of the snowman while AJ and Clara went off to make snow angels.

"I'll be back." Kate murmured to Rick as she kissed his lips softly and went to watch their daughters.

Clara waved excitedly at Kate when she saw her approaching, and smiled as Kate took more pictures. When their snow angels were done, Kate helped each girl up so they didn't get handprints in the way and snapped a couple more shots of the snow angels. Kate was in the process of returning Clara's hug when something wet and cold hit the back of her head.

Before she even turned around, she knew what had happened. She turned slowly and fixed a glare on her husband, who was looking entirely too innocent for her liking.

"Richard Castle!" She cried. "What was that for?"

"Kate?" He asked, continuing to play innocent.

Without breaking eye contact, Kate crouched down and formed a snowball in a matter of seconds, and she lobbed it right at his chest, hitting dead center.

"Oh, it's on. AJ, with me." Rick called as he looked down at his body and then up toward AJ.

AJ looked between her parents for a second before shrugging and running off after her father.

Kate turned to Clara and smiled. "Want to help me beat them in a snowball fight?"

Clara nodded excitedly and followed Kate behind a large grouping of rocks.

"Alright, first things first, make as many as you can." Kate told Clara while Rick gave the same advice to AJ.

"This will be home base." Rick said as he packed snowballs with his daughter. "Take a few with you, and come back here for more."

Clara nodded as she concentrated on making snowballs. "What if they try to get ours?"

Rick smirked. "Don't let them."

"How do we know the winner?" AJ asked, ever the practical one.

Kate smiled. "When Daddy starts crying because we're beating him, we've won."

The parents smiled at their children and everybody grabbed a couple snowballs and branched out.

Kate peeked over the edge of a rock and spotted AJ running toward a tree. Before her daughter made it to safety, Kate hit her in the side. Just as she ducked down, a snowball hit the rock right in front of where her face had been. Kate looked over and smiled when she saw Clara pop up and throw a snowball, followed by Rick's muffled curse when he go hit.

"Nice, Monkey." Kate said quietly, smiling at her little girl.

The snowball fight continued as countless chunks of snow were thrown, landing with varying degrees of accuracy. Kate had noticed a few people pause and watch the family, smiling at what was clearly a very close relationship, before carrying on with their lives.

Kate looked over and saw AJ hurrying back to where their snowballs were stashed, and smiled as Clara hit her in the back. Clara was just turning back to look at Kate when a snowball seemed to come from nowhere, and hit her right above her left eye. Clara dropped to the ground and brought her hand up to where she'd been hit, and a moment later, Kate could see her shoulders shaking as she tried not to cry.

Kate dropped the snowballs she'd been about to throw and hurried to where her daughter was. She got hit a couple times but she didn't pay any attention as she crouched in front of Clara and tried to pull her hand away from her face.

"Let me see, Monkey." Kate murmured when Clara resisted. Finally, Clara removed her hand, just as another snowball hit Kate's back.

"Oh, baby." Kate murmured. "Castle, stop!" She yelled over her shoulder.

"Giving up already, Kate? You and the monk can't handle it?" Rick taunted.

"Rick, stop it." Kate called again as she removed her scarf and pressed it against the cut on Clara's face.

Rick stepped out of his hiding place at the same time AJ did, and together they carefully approached Kate and Clara, unsure whether or not it was a trap. When Rick saw that Kate had her scarf pressed to Clara's face, he began running toward them.

"What happened?" He asked as he crouched down beside his family with AJ on his heels.

Kate shook her head and looked around. She stopped when she saw a smallish gray stone lying in what used to be a snowball. She reached over and picked it up, her suspicions confirmed when she saw a hint of blood on it.

"This was in the snowball that hit her face."

"Oh, God." AJ spoke up. "I'm so sorry! I saw it earlier, but I didn't think it got put into one! I'm sorry, Clara!"

"It's not your fault, AJ." Kate said calmly. "You didn't do it on purpose."

Kate pulled the scarf away to get a look at the cut and sighed. "Rick, take her to the hospital. Lennox Hill isn't far from here. AJ and I will meet you there."

"No doctors!" Clara cried as she tried to scoot away from her mother. Rick grabbed her and lifted her into the air. He took the scarf Kate held out and pressed it back to Clara's face.

"Sorry, Monkey. But Momma's the boss, and we have to do what she says. But I'll stay with you, and you'll be ok."

With that, Rick turned and started walking out of the park and toward the hospital while Kate stood and helped AJ to her feet.

"I'm sorry, Momma. I swear, I didn't mean to get the rock in a snowball. And I wasn't aiming at her head, either! I just, I sneezed and threw with my eyes closed. I didn't mean to, I pro-"

"AJ, calm down." Kate soothed. "It was an accident and accidents happen."

"But she's scared! She hates doctors, and now she has to go to the hospital because of me!"

Kate smiled and kissed her daughter's head. "She'll be ok. But before we go see her, we'll stop in the hospital gift shop and get her something, ok?"

AJ nodded and grabbed her mother's hand as they made their way toward the hospital. As they walked in silence, AJ kept her eyes open for a toy store of some kind, since she wasn't keen on getting her sister something from the hospital. Finally they passed a small toy store and after a moment to convince her mother that this was the best idea, AJ led Kate inside and to the section of stuffed animals. They looked for a moment, but AJ didn't see anything she thought Clara would love. They were just about to leave when AJ saw a black leg sticking out from under a pile of elephants. When she tugged on it, a panda popped out, and AJ smiled up at her mother.

"This one." She declared, and Kate smiled in response.

When they got to the counter, Kate started to take her wallet out, but AJ shook her head as she pulled out her own wallet, which she'd gotten just a few days before, and paid for the panda, telling Kate that it was her fault and she would pay.

Kate smiled at her daughter again as she resituated her purse on her shoulder. As the lady behind the counter began putting the panda in a bag, AJ stopped her.

"Can I carry it? It's for my little sister, and we're going to see her now."

The lady smiled and handed the panda over. "There you go. I'm sure she'll love it."

AJ smiled in thanks and held the panda close to her chest as she followed Kate from the store.

As they continued walking, Kate tried telling AJ that she didn't need to pay for the toy, but AJ wouldn't listen to her. AJ was still holding the panda tightly when they walked into the hospital, and after a brief conversation with a nurse, they were directed to the room Clara was in.

AJ stepped inside cautiously and smiled when she saw her sister lying in the bed.

"Hi." AJ murmured as she walked to Clara's side while Rick went to join his wife at the door.

"She ok?" Kate whispered as Rick hugged her.

"Perfect. She need 7 stitches, and she handled them like a pro. Even got a lollipop for her trouble. She'll be released as soon as the doctor comes back."

Kate nodded and smiled as she watched AJ carefully sit on the bed beside her sister's hip.

"She bought the panda." Kate said quietly as they watched AJ give her sister the stuffed animal. "Kept saying it was her fault, so she had to pay."

Rick smiled. "Sounds like her."

"Momma, guess what?" Clara called from the bed as she hugged the panda tightly.

"What, Monkey?" Kate asked as she walked over to stand on Clara's other side.

"We're gonna match."

"Who?"

"You and me."

"How's that, Monkey?" Kate asked, slightly confused.

"Imma have a scar too." Clara said as she brought her hand up to the gauze patch on her forehead. "Just like you gots one." Clara reached out and gently touched Kate's coat exactly above where her scar was.

Kate smiled and took Clara's hand, pressing a kiss to the palm. "Yes we will, baby."

"I like matching you, Momma. Cause you're pretty."

Kate smiled. "You're pretty too, Clara."

Clara smiled up at her mother and turned back to her panda. "What do I name him?"

"How do you know it's a him?" Kate asked.

"It's a bear. All bears are hims." Clara said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

They all laughed and Clara shrugged, not entirely sure what was so funny. "Pete." She finally said. "I'll call him Pete."

AJ smiled. "It's a great name."

Clara was released a few minutes later, and after both girls were asleep that night, Kate and Rick were lying in their bed with their arms around each other.

"I think tonight was a success." Rick said. "Girls had fun. Before the whole hospital thing, anyway."

Kate smiled and kissed his shoulder. "Yeah. You're still a nine-year-old on a sugar rush though."

Rick laughed and kissed her head. "Yeah, but you love me."

* * *

**I know that was kind of long, and it didn't really stick to the prompt completely, but I think it still works. The scene where they're spilt into their teams and discussing strategy might be confusing, but I pictured it as one of those scenes where they're having the same conversations, so the camera cuts back and forth. It makes sense in my mind.**

**Follow me on twitter AllyLobster. And make sure you vote for Stana, Nathan, Caskett, Castle, and Ryan&Esposito for the people's choice awards. Every vote counts!**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	29. 9- Remarkable

**I just rewatched the video and got a bunch more ideas. So now it's just a matter of actually writing them. Here's the first.**

**I changed the part about this that upset a couple people. If you don't know what I'm talking about, don't worry, you weren't really missing much. Again, I'm sorry if I've offended you, and I hope that you won't stop reading this story just because of one little section.**

**Also, thank you to everyone who's reviewed this story, we're now back over 100 reviews, and I can't tell you how happy that makes me. Big thanks as well to everyone who has favorited and followed this, your support means so much to me, really. **

**I think that's everything. Hope you guys like this chapter better.**

* * *

**#9 Because she's the most remarkable, maddening, challenging, frustrating person he's ever met.**

"Kate, time to wake up, honey." Rick murmured as he stroked his girlfriend's hair.

Kate groaned and rolled away from him. Rick smiled and scooted closer to her and continued to stroke her hair. Kate reached a hand out and started batting at him, landing a few halfhearted slaps to his chest. Rick just smiled in response and leaned in and kissed her temple.

"Kate, come on, sleepy head. Time to get up. The day's a wastin'."

Kate groaned again and aimed a kick at him, landing a hit to his shin with her heel that had him hissing slightly. When Kate heard the noise, she smiled gleefully and tried to go back to sleep. But Rick was still there. He traced his fingers up and down her sides and Kate couldn't help but squirm at the sensation. Finally Kate sighed and rolled onto her back and glared at Rick.

"You better have a damn good reason for waking me up." She said.

Rick smiled and kissed her lips softly. "We're going for a walk." He said when he pulled away.

Kate looked at him for a moment. "Nope." She finally decided. "Not a good enough reason." With that, she rolled away from him again and pulled the blankets over her head. Rick watched her for a moment before he reached out and tentatively reached out to pull the covers back slightly.

"You move those covers any further down at all, and just watch what I do to you." Kate growled.

Deciding, rather stupidly, to see what she'd do, Rick grabbed the covers fully in his hand and pulled them away from her body so that they landed at the foot of the bed, and Kate was left with only one of his shirts and a pair of his sweat pants to protect her from the cold November air.

Almost immediately after he pulled the covers away from her body, Rick's ear was trapped firmly between Kate's fingers. "I warned you." Kate hissed, her expression telling him that she was beyond pissed.

"Apples, apples." Rick cried, and he rubbed his ear when she released it. "Come on, Kate. It's nearly noon." Rick complained when she made no move to get out of bed. Instantly, he could see that that had been the wrong thing to say.

Kate reached out and grabbed his other ear, twisting and tugging it. "That may be the case, but _your_ baby kept me up all night because she's decided that my bladder and kidneys are trampolines. So unless you want to see what life without an ear is like, I suggest you tuck me back in and go write until_ I _decide to wake up. Understand?"

Rick tried to nod, but winced when it only lead to her tugging his ear more. "Yes." He said softly, trying to keep the tears out of his eyes. Kate looked at him for a second longer before releasing his ear, causing Rick to sigh in relief. He stood up and walked around to Kate's side of the bed and pulled the blankets up around Kate's chin, smiling when she sighed happily and snuggled back into the warmth that remained. Rick chanced a kiss her to forehead and was relieved when she sighed in again in response.

With one last look at his girlfriend, Rick made his way out of the bedroom and through his office into the living room, where Alexis was sitting on the couch.

"I thought you were waking her up?"

Rick sighed as he sat down. "I tried. She tried to rip my ears off in reply."

Alexis nodded as if that made perfect sense. "She say when to wake her up?"

Rick shook his head. "I figure if she's not out by 6, I'll go wake her up. But I felt her tossing and turning all night, so I know she didn't get any sleep. And now that she's on desk duty, she can slightly alter her schedule."

Alexis nodded in reply, and the two of them spent the rest of the afternoon watching TV together, until she left around 4 to go back to her dorm. An hour later, the door to his office opened and a very sleepy looking Kate came stumbling out, making her way directly to him and into his lap. She curled into his chest and yawned widely.

"Good night." Rick said softly, hoping she wasn't going to shoot him again.

"What time is it?" She asked.

"A little after 5."

Kate sat upright and glared at him. "You let me sleep all day? Rick, how am I gonna be able to get anything done tomorrow if I won't be able to sleep all bight? I'm supposed to be sticking to my normal schedule!"

Rick held his hands up in surrender. "I tried waking you up around 11, and you tried to rip my ear off. Twice."

Kate gave him a look that said she clearly didn't believe him. "Yeah right."

Rick sighed. "I'm serious, Kate. See?" He asked, pointing to his ears, which were still slightly red from the abuse they'd taken earlier.

Kate continued to look at him. "Why?" She asked.

Rick shrugged. "I was trying to wake you up. You said if I didn't tuck you back in I was gonna find out what it was like to live without an ear."

"Tuck me back in? You mean because you ripped the covers off me?"

"Yes! Because yesterday you got mad at me for letting you sleep all day. And I didn't want the same thing to happen today. So I was gonna take you for a walk through the park."

"The baby's too cold for a walk." Kate said after a moment of silence.

Rick smiled and gently laid his hand on her stomach. "The baby is _inside_ your body. She's plenty warm."

"Unless I get cold. In which case, she'll be surrounded by cold."

"Not if you bundle up." Rick said.

"What? And look like a giant puff? No thanks."

Rick sighed and let his head fall back on the couch. After a moment, he lifted Kate and set her back on the couch and stood up. "Fine. What do you want for dinner?"

"I'm not really hungry." Kate replied, although she quickly realized that was the wrong answer.

"Frankly, I don't care if you're hungry, Kate. I should have forced you to eat something when I tried to wake you up earlier, but I was a little distracted. So you're gonna eat something now, and you're not going to grumble about it, because there's a baby that is relying on you for everything. Can't you stop being frustrating for just long enough to make sure that you feed _our_ baby?"

Rick's tone was angry, and it made Kate wince internally. She looked at Rick and could see the anger rolling off of him in waves. "Macaroni and cheese?" She asked meekly, worried he'd yell at her for not picking something highly nutritious. But she'd been dreaming about his macaroni and cheese just before she'd woken up.

Rick sighed. "With or without bacon?"

"With. Please?" Kate was still avoiding eye contact with him, and it hurt, but Rick knew he deserved it. He sighed and felt the residual anger leaving his system as he turned and pulled out everything he'd need to make their dinner while Kate shifted and laid down on the couch.

20 minutes later, the loft was filled with the warm scent of macaroni and cheese and bacon, and Kate realized how hungry she was. She heard hurried footsteps coming toward her, followed by a clatter as something landed harshly on the coffee table.

Instantly, her eyes flashed open, even though she didn't remember closing them. She saw two bowls in front of her, and she cautiously raised her eyes until she was looking at Rick.

Rick was confused when she first looked at him, until he recognized the emotion in her eyes as fear. "Shit. I'm sorry, Kate. The bowls were hotter than I expected and I was about to burn my hand, so they landed a little louder than I'd intended."

Kate nodded as she sat up, still a little timid after their encounter before dinner. Rick sighed and sat down beside her. He reached out and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear before running his thumb under her eye.

"I'm sorry. For earlier." He murmured as he leaned in and kissed her forehead tenderly. "You just drive me crazy sometimes."

"Sorry." Kate whispered as she looked down at her lap. "And I'm sorry for trying to rip your ear off."

"It's ok, they've gotten used to it." Kate didn't respond to Rick's attempt at humor, so he tried a different tactic. "Hey." Rick said as he raised her chin so her eyes met his. "It's ok. I know you, I know how challenging you can be. I didn't exactly get tons of sleep last night either."

Kate looked ashamed. "Sorry. I should have-"

"What? Slept in the guest room? How would that have fixed anything? We both established long ago that we can't sleep properly without the other there."

Kate smiled slightly. "Yeah."

Rick leaned in and kissed her nose, earning a giggle from Kate. He reached out and handed her one of the bowls and began to eat from the other. Kate finished hers in record time and went to get more. She looked at the pan he'd cooked it in and then looked at her bowl before she shrugged and deposited her bowl in the sink and grabbed the dish and brought it over to the couch, glaring at Rick when he had the nerve to laugh at her.

Kate had eaten nearly half, and threatened to stab Rick with her fork twice when he'd tried to swipe some for himself, when she looked out the window and smiled. She set the dish down and hurried over to the door, where she pulled on a pair of boots and hurried out of the loft. Rick followed after her, making sure to grab coats for both of them, and pausing to lock the door, before he went to the end of the hall and had to wait for the elevator, since Kate hadn't bothered to wait for him.

When he got to the lobby, he looked around until Eduardo opened the door and gestured with his head that Kate was outside. Sure enough, Rick found Kate twirling around in circles with her arms out wide. He smiled and walked up behind her, startling her slightly, but he managed to get her into her coat and wrap a scarf around her throat.

15 minutes later, they were still outside, and Rick couldn't tear his eyes away from her. People walking by were staring at them, but they neither noticed nor cared. Rick wrapped his arms around Kate and pulled her into his body, smiling when she giggled and kissed his cheek. Her nose was cold to the touch, but Rick didn't care.

"You're truly remarkable. You know that, right?"

Kate smiled up at him. "Thought I was maddening? And challenging? And frustrating?"

Rick smiled and kissed her nose, always loving her reaction. "You still are. All of those. But mostly, you're remarkable."

Kate laughed and kissed his lips, smiling when he deepened it. After they broke apart, Kate leaned in so they were sharing the same breaths.

"Actually, I'm mostly cold. Take us inside. Baby's cold."

Rick smiled and kissed her once more before leading her back to the door. He wrapped her arm around her shoulders and kept her close to him the whole way.

* * *

**So that was slightly longer than I'd anticipated. But yeah. There you go. Hope you liked it. **

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	30. 42 Dr Manhattan

**Sorry for the delay. This is a little Halloween thing for all of you, despite the fact that Halloween already happened. If you don't celebrate Halloween, I'm sorry and I hope that you can find some candy for yourself somewhere.**

* * *

**#42 Because he'd look good as Dr. Manhattan**

"Momma, Clara's cryin'." AJ yelled from the living room where she was waiting for her mom to finish up and braid her hair.

Kate hurried out of the bedroom and over to the playpen Clara was lying in. "AJ, sweetie, what have Daddy and I said about yelling in the house?"

"I not s'posed ta." AJ replied softly.

Kate smiled at her daughter as she lifted Clara into her arms. "It's ok, AJ. Thank you."

AJ nodded and went back to looking at the book she was holding.

"What's wrong, Monkey?" Kate asked as she bounced the 11-month-old on her hip. "Huh? What's got you screamin' bloody murder?"

Clara sniffled as she burrowed her face into Kate's neck and gripped her shirt tightly.

"Poor baby." Kate soothed as she rubbed Clara's back. On a whim, she lifted Clara higher and sniffed only to recoil nearly instantly. "Well, now I know why you were cryin', huh?" Kate asked as she moved over to the stairs.

"Stay right there, AJ, I'll be right back and then I'll do your hair, ok?"

AJ nodded and watched as her mother went up the stairs with her sister. A moment later, her dad exited the office and came to sit beside her.

"Hey, Bug." He said as she pulled her into his lap. "Where's Momma?"

"Clara stinky." AJ said.

Rick nodded. "Ok. You excited for tonight?"

"No."

"What? Why?" Rick asked, appalled that his daughter wasn't excited for copious amounts of candy.

"Don't feel good." AJ murmured as she snuggled into her father.

"I'm sorry, Bug. Does you tummy hurt?"

AJ nodded. "I don't like it."

Rick laughed. "I can't imagine that you do."

Before AJ could answer, they heard Kate singing softly to Clara as she came down the stairs. When she reached the couch, she smiled at Rick as she passed over Clara, who was now dressed in her monkey costume, and had AJ sit on the floor.

"We all set to leave after this?" Kate asked as she began braiding AJ's hair.

"Yeah. I don't feel good." AJ said.

Kate leaned down and kissed her daughter's head. "I know, AJ. But I texted Jenny, and she said she'd set up a place for you to sleep, ok? Somewhere quiet. And Daddy and I will check on you, ok?"

AJ nodded as Kate began braiding the other half of her hair. "Do I still get candy?"

Kate and Rick laughed, and a moment later, Clara joined in. "Not if your tummy hurts." Kate said.

"No, for later. For when I'm not sick."

Rick smiled at his daughter. "Of course."

AJ beamed as Kate finished tying the last bow in her hair. "Alright, we're done. Dr. Manhattan, Fairy queen, monkey, let us went."

They stood up and Kate easily took a now squirming Clara from Rick.

"If our girls weren't right here, I'd throw you down on every hard surface and take you. _Hard_." Kate murmured softly into his ear as she kissed his cheek.

"You really like this costume, don't you?" He asked, smirking at her.

Kate nodded. "I told you, the blue skin brings out your blue eyes. You make a fantastic Dr. Manhattan."

Rick's smirk grew. "You never said the blue skin would make you so hot for me." He murmured into her ear.

Kate blushed and turned her attention to Clara, who had started poking her cheek. "Alright, Monkey, we're going."

"Come on, Professor, the party won't be around forever."

Kate laughed and led the way out of the loft, her emerald green robes and pointy hat leading the way.

* * *

**Kinda short, but I hope that's ok. In case you guys are confused, Kate dressed up as Professor McGonnagall from Harry Potter, because what's not to love about the fabulous Dame Maggie Smith?**

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**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	31. 66- Domesticity

**#66 Because domesticity looks good on them**

"Castle, no." Kate said as she grabbed her purse and keys.

"Come on, Kate. Please?" Rick asked as he followed her to the door.

Kate looked him up and down and finally sighed. "Fine. But I will make you sit in the car if you misbehave."

Rick smiled. "I'm fine with that."

* * *

"Castle! Honestly, stop it." Kate hissed.

"What? I just want whipped cream." He said with puppy dog eyes.

Kate picked up the package and put it back on the shelf, just in time for Rick to put a case of chocolate milk into the cart.

"Castle! Knock it off!"

Castle sighed but lifted the case out and put it back on the shelf. "Fine. What do we need in here? Or are you trying to make me freeze to death again?"

Kate rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I don't see what I wanted, so we can leave."

Rick nodded and began pushing the cart out of the dairy area and followed as Kate led him down one of the aisles.

"Seriously?" He asked when he saw what she was adding to the cart. "Why isn't it ok for me to get whipped cream, but it's ok for you to buy more pickles than anyone could eat in a year?"

Kate raised an eyebrow at him and gave him a look.

"Right, you're pregnant, I'm not. Fine, buy pickles."

Kate smirked at him and added another jar to the cart. When she was done, she stepped up beside him and kissed the corner of his mouth. "You love me."

Rick growled and wrapped his arm around her waist and tugged her into his body. He pressed a firm kiss to her lips and groaned when she opened her mouth for his tongue.

Someone cleared their throat behind them and they sprang apart. Kate looked at the woman staring disapprovingly at them and ducked her head and blushed. Rick didn't bother to act ashamed and just smiled at the woman as he moved the cart forward while keeping one arm around Kate.

"I told you to behave." Kate murmured, but Rick knew she wasn't mad.

"I can't be expected to behave when you kiss me." Rick replied easily.

Kate chuckled and moved to a more respectable distance from Rick, ignoring the pout he gave her. "Come on, Writer Boy. We're not done shopping."

"Man, Kate. Writer Man."

Kate laughed and shook her head. "Whatever you say."

Kate let out a quiet shriek when she felt Rick wrap his hand around her wrist and tug her back into his body. Her back bumped into his chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist, allowing his hands to come to rest on the slight bump she was sporting.

"I think this proves that it's Man." Rick murmured into her ear as his thumb stroked over her shirt. "God, you're beautiful."

Kate allowed herself to relax into his body for a moment before she remembered that they were in public. Slowly, she pushed away from him but grabbed his hand in compromise. "Thank you. But save it for at home, yeah?"

Rick smiled and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "No promises. Lead on."

Kate laughed and hooked her arm through his as they meandered through the aisles, stopping every so often to add something to the cart, and Rick was impressed when Kate only rolled her eyes when he tried to sneak multiple cases of candy into the cart.

Rick wasn't really paying attention to where they were going until they'd stopped and Kate was scrutinizing the shelf in front of them.

"Umm, Kate?" He asked, his voice slightly higher than he'd like. "I don't think we need those right now."

Kate chuckled as she picked up a box off the shelf. "They aren't for me. Alexis asked me to pick some up for her."

"Alexis?" Rick asked. "No. Why?"

Kate laughed. "Really, Castle? You were a single dad. This can't be the first time you bought tampons."

"Mother usually bought them." Rick said with a grimace as he continued looking at the shelf. Helped Alexis with all of that. Made it less awkward."

Kate smiled. "Good to know. Come on, I want whipped cream."

Rick tore his gaze away from the shelf and stared in shock at Kate. "Seriously?"

"I'm the pregnant one, remember?"

Rick smiled. "Couldn't forget if I wanted to." He said softly.

Kate looked over her shoulder and smiled. "Good."

"Excuse me." An older woman said as they walked past.

"Yes?" Kate asked as she stopped walking.

"I just want to let you know that you two are a great couple, very cute together. I can see that you love each other very much."

Kate blushed and looked down at her feet. "Thank you." She murmured.

Rick smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side. He pressed a kiss to her head and Kate could feel his smile.

The woman smiled at them and walked away, and Kate turned to bury her face in his shoulder.

"She's right, you know. I love you." Rick murmured as he kissed her temple.

Kate nodded against him. "I love you too."

"Come on." Rick said, pressing one last kiss to her head. "Let's go get that whipped cream."

Kate smiled and followed after him.

* * *

**There you go. I'm not sure if New York has Costco or not, but we do in Arizona, and it's a wonderful place. I was there today with my dad and we walked by some whipped cream, which is how I got this idea. Hope you guys liked it.**

**Follow me on tumblr and twitter AllyLobster**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	32. 36- Unconditionally

**Reviews are slipping again, so I'm giving you guys a sad-ish chapter. It might be a little bit outside the realm of possibility for them, but I like it, and I think it's realistic for any couple. Hope you guys like it too.**

* * *

**#36 Because all the songs make sense.**

As the rain continued to pour, Kate stumbled her way through the streets, not paying much attention to where her feet were taking her. Tears mixed with the rain on her cheeks and blurred her vision as she continued on her way.

Her hands, knees, and head throbbed but she couldn't really remember why. All she remembered was the woman and the yelling and then running. She knew she had reacted badly, but it all happened so fast and once it had started, she'd been powerless to stop it.

She was soaking wet by the time she made it into the building, and it was a good thing it was so late or people would have been staring as she dripped water along the tile on her way to the elevator. She shivered as the doors opened and she walked down the hall, but she froze once she was standing outside the door. She didn't know what to do anymore, didn't know how to handle screwing up again. So she pressed her back against the wall and slid to the floor, pulling her knees into her chest and burying her head in them, allowing the tears to fall freely again as sobs wracked her body.

* * *

After hours of searching the streets for her, Rick returned to his building with his hopes crushed. He'd looked everywhere, the swings, the library, her mother's grave, everywhere he could think of and he hadn't seen even a glimpse of her.

He didn't know how it had gone so horribly wrong. Sure, some random woman had come up with a story that they'd slept together not long ago, and wanted to know if he'd like to go again. Kate had come back from the bathroom to see the woman kissing him and had left the restaurant in a huff. He'd come back to the loft to see her sitting on the couch, and after a shouting match that had probably been heard halfway to China, she'd turned and stormed out, not paying attention as he tried to stop her.

With a heavy heart and heavy feet, Rick made his way thought he lobby and to the elevator. As he walked down the hallway his eyes were focused on the ground as he dug in his pockets for his keys. As he worked the keys into the lock, he heard a noise coming from the area near his feet, and his heart shot into his throat at what he saw.

* * *

"Kate?" a shocked voice asked.

Kate picked her head up off her knees and looked up, blinking rapidly to clear her eyes. "Castle." She said softly.

Rick crouched down, making himself eye-level with her. "Oh, Kate." He gasped when he saw the cut above her eyebrow, and the small trickle of dry blood down the side of her face. "What happened? Where did you go?"

"Dunno." Kate mumbled. "Wasn't paying attention." A shiver coursed through her and she curled further into herself.

"Come on." Rick said as he stood and reached out to pull her to her feet. "You need to get out of those clothes and into something warm and dry."

Kate nodded and shuffled into the loft behind him, her head hung as she tried to avoid eye contact. She was about to enter the office when she realized he wasn't following her; she paused and turned back to him, confused.

"You shower and warm up. I'll make some tea."

Kate nodded and shuffled into the bathroom and turned on the shower before stripping out of her wet clothes and stepping into the shower, relaxing when the hot water hit her skin. She took her time warming up before she decided to face the music. She shut off the water and wrapped a towel around her body as she stepped into the closet. After a moment of uncertainty, she pulled on a pair of Rick's sweatpants and an old sweatshirt of his. She quickly braided her hair and after a deep breath, she left the bedroom.

Rick was sitting on the couch with two mugs on the coffee table in front of him. He looked up when he saw Kate enter the room and smiled while he gestured for her to sit down and take a mug. Kate complied, curling into herself as she held the mug to her chest.

They sat in silence for a moment before Rick finally took a breath and started. "What happened, Kate?"

Kate looked at him, confused, until he gestured to the cut on her face. "Oh. I think I tripped. My hands and knees hurt too."

Rick pulled one of her arms closer to him and inspected her palm, hissing quietly when he saw that they were scraped up. Then he pulled up one of the legs of the sweat pants and gasped when he saw her knees. Without another word, he stood and went into the bathroom to retrieve the first aid kit. When he returned, he tended to the cut on her face, closing it with a butterfly clip before wrapping strips of gauze around her hands. He poured hydrogen peroxide on a cotton ball and dabbed at her knee, smiling in sympathy when she flinched in pain. He taped a piece of gauze over each knee before closing up the kit and placing it on the floor. He looked back at Kate and found tears in her eyes and fresh tear tracks on her face.

"Kate, I'm sorry. I know that it's painful."

Kate's shaking head cut him off mid-thought. "It's not that."

"Then what?"

"Even now, you're taking care of me. I messed up, Rick. I screwed up so badly, and you still let me in and took care of me. I keep messing up, and you always let me back in. All I do is hurt you, and you still take care of me." Tears were streaming down Kate's cheeks by the time she finished speaking, and she was nearly hyperventilating. Rick moved across the couch and pulled Kate into his lap, holding her tightly.

"Kate, shhh. Breathe, sweetie. Your reaction was normal. Maybe you overreacted a little bit, but it was perfectly understandable. But for the record, I don't know who that girl was, Kate. I don't know who she is, and I've never seen her before."

"I know." Kate mumbled. "I know she kissed you, I know you wouldn't cheat on me. I should have listened, but I was just so mad. I'm sorry, Rick. I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I want you to know that I'm sorry."

"You have it, Kate. You will always have my forgiveness, as long as you always come back. I know that sometimes it's easier for you to run than to talk things out, and while it isn't necessarily ideal, it's you. I'll take your bad days with your good, because it's better than no days at all. I will walk through every storm we face, because I love you. I love you, Kate. Unconditionally."

They were silent as Kate continued to calm down. "I trust you, Rick." She finally said softly. "I need you to know that. I trust you more than I've ever trusted anyone besides myself. Sometimes it scares me, and sometimes it hurts, but I can't help it."

"I know, Kate. But promise me that if this happens again we will try to talk about it? Better than we did this time?"

"I promise to try."

"That's all I ask." Rick said as he kissed her head. "That's all I ever ask."

They fell into silence again as Kate thought over Rick's words. "Were you quoting Katy Perry earlier?" She asked as she pulled away to look into his eyes.

Rick blushed and floundered. "I uh- well... Alexis-"

"Don't." Kate said while trying to suppress a laugh and a smile. "Don't try to blame your daughter."

Rick sighed. "Fine. Yes, I was quoting a Katy Perry song. But I like it, and it's true."

Kate's smile slipped through and leaned in for a tentative kiss. "I love you too. Unconditionally."

* * *

**I'm gonna be really honest, I really liked this chapter. I've been wanting to use this song for them, and this seemed like a great way to do it. If you haven't heard Unconditionally by Katy Perry, go listen to it. I might do a companion chapter to this, but I'm not sure. I have to find another song that I can fit a story to, so if you have suggestions, let me know and I'll listen to and consider them. **

**Follow me on twitter AllyLobster and tumblr at allylobster dot tumblr dot com**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	33. 36- Arms

**I'm so sorry, guys! Life and school kind of got away from me, plus I started reading a new fic- go check out Apologize by Caffinate Me if you want to read a great story- and all that led to not updating this. But I'm back, and I hope this makes up for it. This is kind of a continuation of last chapter. It's not as angsty (Hopefully) as the last one was.**

**Also, it's Veteran's Day here in America, so thank you to every person who's served in the military, not only for American citizens, but for whatever country you call home. If you've served, I applaud and thank you.**

* * *

**#36 Because all the songs make sense.**

Kate glanced at her watch again and sighed when she saw that just 3 minutes had passed since she'd last looked. She brought her hand up to run through her hair as she checked the display board again and sighed in relief when she saw that the plane was listed under arrived. It wouldn't be long now. Hopefully.

Kate turned and let her back come to rest on the wall and tipped her head back as she allowed her eyes to close for a moment. But then they snapped open again as she heard a group of people heading her way. She pulled herself away from the wall and returned to keeping watch, smiling brightly when she finally spotted him. It didn't take long for him to catch her eyes, and then his face was spreading into an identical smile, and Kate didn't care about what was proper anymore as she raced through the throng of people. Rick had just enough time to put his bag down before he opened his arms just as she came crashing into them.

Rick wrapped his arms tightly around Kate's waist and without warning spun her in a circle, eliciting a gasp and a giggle to escape her before she kissed him. Rick pulled away after a moment and leaned his forehead against hers, their eyes locked as their fingers became entwined.

"Never again." Kate murmured. "Never again." She repeated as she released his hands and wrapped them firmly around his neck. "Two months is way to long. You tell Paula and Gina-"

"Never again." Rick answered, smiling as he hugged her back.

Kate nodded into his neck and tightened her grip, as though she was worried this was just a dream. "I missed you. So much."

"I know." Rick murmured into her hair, squeezing her slightly. "I missed you too. Everyday."

They stood in silence for a moment longer, until Kate finally pulled away again. She grabbed his hand and they started walking toward baggage claim. "Come on. Let's get your bags and head home." She said softly.

Rick stopped walking and pulled her into his arms again. "I'm already home. When you put your arms around me, I know I'm home."

Kate smiled and hugged him again before releasing him. "Would you like some crackers to go with your cheese?" She teased with a smile.

Rick smiled back and leaned in for a kiss before they continued on their way. "Not right now, thanks."

They were quiet as they stood around the carousal and waited for his bag to appear. Since their reunion had taken so long, most of the bags were already circling, and it didn't take long for Kate to spot the red ribbon she'd tied to the handle for him.

After Rick had grabbed the bag, he and Kate made their way outside to where a car was waiting for them. Rick handed his bags over for the driver to put in the trunk while he helped Kate into the car and slid in behind her. Once the door was closed, Rick leaned in and kissed her softly, reveling in the moan he'd coaxed out of her. When he pulled away, Kate leaned in for another, much more heated kiss, and when they broke apart to the sound of the trunk closing, they were both panting.

The driver greeted Rick before pointing the car in the direction of the loft and driving, giving the couple in the back seat as much privacy as he could. Rick and Kate opted out of using the seat belts in favor of being close together. Rick was leaning against the door and had pulled Kate firmly into his side, relishing the feeling of her body pressed up against his for the first time in entirely too long.

When they arrived at the loft, Rick paid the driver and followed behind Kate as they made their way to the elevator. The loft was empty when they arrived, and the quiet suited them just fine.

"Martha was more than willing to leave when I reminded her this morning that you'd be coming home today. She'll be back in the morning, but she said I could have you to myself tonight, since we've been separated for so long." Kate explained. "Alexis is expecting lunch or dinner with you tomorrow, whichever you're up for. She has a test in the morning, so she didn't put up much fight when I asked her to stay at the dorm tonight. I hope you don't mind. I wasn't trying to push her out, I just-"

Rick kissed her to end her rambling. "It's fine. I can wait until tomorrow to see them both."

Kate nodded and smiled. "Ok."

Rick smiled and kissed her head before heading into the bedroom to deposit his suitcase while Kate made her way to the living room to look out the window. It was late, and the light coming in from the other buildings never failed to make Kate breathless, even after all her time in New York.

She caught Rick's reflection in the window as he stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"I hope that you see right through my walls. I hope that you catch me, cause I'm already falling." Kate murmured as a smile crossed her face.

"What?" Rick asked, confused.

"I was just singing the song you quoted earlier. Even if it was a fail quote." She teased.

Rick poked her side in retaliation. "I got the gist, that's all that matters."

"Keep telling yourself that, Castle." Kate said before she turned and kissed his cheek softly.

"I'll never let a love get so close." Rick murmured into her ear, earning a smile for his trouble. "You put your arms around me, and I'm home."

Kate's smile grew as she turned to face him. She rested her cheek against his shoulder and tucked her head under his chin as her arms wrapped around him.

"Is that better?" Rick asked.

Kate rolled her eyes. "It was until you ruined it."

Rick smiled and kissed the top of her head. "That song is us." Rick said after a moment of silence.

"Yeah. It is." Kate murmured, thinking over the words. She hugged him even tighter and breathed in the scent of his cologne.

"Welcome home."

* * *

**Well, was it ok? I'll try to have another update out soon, so keep your eyes peeled.**

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**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


	34. 28- Be There

**So, I struck up a deal with Jess Muir on Twitter, as soon as she updated her story, I'd update mine. So here you go, Jess. And everyone else who's been waiting so very patiently for me to update. Also, if you guys haven't already, go check out her story, Promise. It's fantastic and full of Casketty goodness.**

* * *

**#28 Because she wanted someone who would be there for her.**

As the elevator dinged, Kate let out a sigh of relief. She trudged her way down the hall, exhaustion completely taking over her body. It was the kind of exhaustion that no amount of sleep could cure, the kind that left her weary and raw. The kind that stemmed from having to deal with too many criminals like _him_.

As she stepped into the loft, Kate let her bag drop to the ground and pulled her gun and badge off with jerky movements. Her coat came next, but halfway through lifting it up to hang, her muscles decided it wasn't worth it, and so it too fell to the floor. Her shoes were kicked off, and the clunking of the heels hitting the hardwood seemed to do the trick of pulling Rick out of his office.

"Kate? Is that you, sweetheart?"

Kate nodded, even though he couldn't see her yet, but she knew from experience that if she waited long enough, he'd come out and greet her properly. He'd left the precinct early, after numerous calls from Paula and Gina telling him to get the next chapter done, or else. So Kate had been without her biggest source of comfort since lunch had ended, which was entirely too long in her book.

Sure enough, Kate heard the sounds of him getting out of his desk chair and making his way out of the office. He looked around when he stepped into the living room and looked around, giving her a smile when he saw her by the door.

Without a word, Rick held his arms open, and it was as if some supernatural force was propelling her toward him, since mere moments ago she'd been contemplating sinking to the floor and falling asleep by the door. When she reached him, his arms finally wrapped around her, and Kate felt herself finally start to relax.

"What happened?" Rick asked softly, his voice muffled by her hair.

"We found him." Kate said softly. "We caught the son of a bitch."

Rick pulled back and traced her cheekbones with his thumbs. "That's good, isn't it?" He asked softly.

"When we got there, he had another little girl. God, Rick. We were almost too late. He already had her on the bed, and-" Kate cut off when a violent sob forced itself out of her throat. That sob released the flood, and within seconds, the only thing keeping Kate off the floor was the strength of Rick's grip around her waist.

When she finally got her breathing under control again, Kate shuddered. "She was so scared, Rick. I could see it all over her face. She was 7, and she would have ended up like the rest of them."

"But she didn't." Rick told her. "You got there in time, and you saved her. I know that doesn't make up for the other 5 girls you didn't get to in time, but there could have been countless after this one, and you saved them when you saved her."

"But there will always be guys like him, Rick. There will always be another guy waiting to snatch little girls off the street and do horrible things to them."

"I'm not going to deny that. There will always be horrible people, Kate. That's why you're needed. You catch them, and you bring closure to their families. It can't bring their loved ones back, but it gives them something they wouldn't have otherwise. And you gave those parents their daughter back. That's more than you're usually able to do when you catch a killer."

"I know. It just, it makes me wonder, you know?"

"Wonder what?" Rick asked, even though he had a fairly good idea.

"Makes me wonder what the hell we're doing, bringing a baby into a world like this. One where there's no guarantee of safety."

Rick kissed the top of her head and brought his hand down to rest on her still flat abdomen, where the baby they were still getting used to was growing. "I can't promise you that nothing bad will ever happen. That's just not a realistic way to think. But I can promise that you and I will do everything in our power to prevent bad things from happening. We might not be able to keep her from falling off her bike and skinning her knees, or from dating a boy that'll break her heart, but we can pick up the pieces after the fact. We can glue her back together by loving her unconditionally. And we can teach her. She'll be smart, and she'll know how to avoid being in a situation to catch the attention of someone like him. And if, God forbid, something like this does happen to her, we'll have taught her to fight with everything she's got. We'll have taught her not to go down without a fight."

It was silent when he finished speaking, and Kate knew he was right. They couldn't prevent every horrible thing from happening to their baby, but they could prepare her for the possibilities.

Kate's thought shocked her out of her worrying, and she thought back over what Rick had said, and smiled.

"What?" He murmured into her hair, sensing her smile even though he couldn't see it for himself.

"She? Something you want to tell me?" She asked with a smile.

He smiled back and kissed the tip of her nose. "Just a feeling." He said softly.

They fell into silence again and Rick continued stroking his fingers up and down her back, drawing intricate patterns over her shirt.

"Will you hold me, Rick?" She asked softly, tentatively breaking the silence. She knew what his answer would be, it was the same every time she asked. But it was still nice to hear it every once in a while.

"I'll hold you as long as you need, Kate. You don't even have to ask."

* * *

**So... that ended up slightly different than I'd anticipated... I like it though. Hope you did too.**

**Follow me on twitter at AllyLobster and Tumblr at allylobster dot tumblr dot com.**

**Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


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